Filament

Added by Jillian Keng

Definition

Noun

A single thread or a thin flexible threadlike object, process, or appendage.

Merriam-Webster. (n.d.). filament. In Merriam-Webster.com dictionary. Retrieved February 12, 2024, from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/filament 

Adjective

filamentary ; filamentous 

1. Composed of or containing filaments.

2. Pertaining to or resembling a filament.

Meanings & Definitions of English Words. (n.d.). Dictionary.com. https://www.dictionary.com/browse/filamentous 

Pronunciation

• filament  [fil-uh-muhnt] / ˈfɪl ə mənt / 

• filamentous [fil-uh-men-tuhs] / ˌfɪl əˈmɛn təs / 

• filamentary [fil-uh-men-tuh-ree] / ˌfɪl əˈmɛn tə ri / 

Sample sentences

Noun

• I looked at a strand of it on my palm and saw it was some kind of metal filament, so fine it was almost invisible. - Percy Jackson, p. 235 

• The most common microplastics in the environment are microfibers – plastic fragments shaped like tiny threads or filaments. - Jade Chung-Lee, PCMAG, 31 Jan. 2024 (found on Marriam-Webster)

Adjective

• The plumes in question consist of long filamentous feathers that grow from the neck of the egret and also from its breast. - found on Dictionary.com (https://www.gutenberg.org/files/18237/18237-h/18237-h.htm)

Images

Etymology

"Fine untwisted thread, separate fibril," 1590s, from Modern Latin filamentum, from Late Latin filare "to spin, draw out in a long line," from Latin filum "thread" (from PIE root *gwhi- "thread, tendon"). As the name of the incandescent element in a light-bulb, from 1881.  

Harper, D. (n.d.). Etymology of filament. Online Etymology Dictionary. Retrieved February 26, 2024, from https://www.etymonline.com/word/filament

Translation

Chinese: 燈絲, 絲狀物, 線

Korean: 필라멘트

Kazakh: Жіп

Russian: Нить

French: Filament

Spanish: Filamento

German: Filament

Turkish: filaman