Smithson

American  

[smith-suhn] / ˈsmɪθ sən /

noun

1. James, 1765–1829, English chemist and mineralogist.

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Smithson British  

/ ˈsmɪθsən /

noun

1. James. original name James Lewes Macie. 1765–1829, English chemist and mineralogist, who left a bequest to found the Smithsonian Institution

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Example Sentences

The Smithsonian is named for James Smithson, a British scientist who endowed the museum with a gift in his will.

From Slate

Manufacturer’s claims: “Our banana water has 205 mg of magnesium — 50% of the daily value,” Smithson says of Banagua’s Original Banana, which went on the market in July 2025.

From Los Angeles Times

The very spirit of enterprise that lured Smithson’s money in the first place could also be associated with a kind of restlessness, mounting recurring challenges to the established order.

From The Wall Street Journal

Smithson would hardly recognize this as an “increase and diffusion of knowledge.”

From The Wall Street Journal

To understand this development, it might help to consider the Smithsonian’s early history, as recounted in “Smithson’s Gamble: The Smithsonian Institution in American Life, 1836-1906.”

From The Wall Street Journal