ENGLISH
REFERENCE

filament

n. countable
C1 Advanced US //ˈfɪɫəmənt// UK //fˈɪləmənt// fil·a·ment

n. a very thin wire or thread. You usually see this inside an old light bulb or as part of a flower.

n. a slender, threadlike object or fibre, such as the wire in an incandescent lamp or the stalk of a stamen.


SIMPLE

The light bulb stopped working because the filament broke.

CONTEXTUAL

The 3D printer feeds a plastic filament through a heated nozzle to create the object layer by layer.

COMPLEX

In the early twentieth century, engineers experimented with various materials before discovering that a tungsten filament could withstand the high temperatures required for prolonged illumination.

Synonyms
Origin

Borrowed from Medieval Latin fīlāmentum, from Late Latin fīlō (“to spin, draw out in a long line”), from Latin fīlum (“thread”).

Usage

Commonly used in technical contexts like electronics, 3D printing, and biology.

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