disk

[ disk ]

noun

1. any thin, flat, circular plate or object.
2. any surface that is flat and round, or seemingly so:

   the disk of the sun.

3. disc ( def 1 ).
4. Computers. any of several types of media consisting of thin, round plates of plastic or metal, used for external storage:

   magnetic disk;

   hard disk;

   optical disk.

5. Botany, Zoology. any of various roundish, flat structures or parts.
6. intervertebral disk.
7. Botany. (in the daisy and other composite plants) the central portion of the flower head, composed of tubular florets.
8. any of the circular steel blades that form the working part of a disk harrow.
9. Mathematics. the domain bounded by a circle.
10. Archaic. discus.

verb (used with object)

1. Informal. disc ( def 3 ).
2. to cultivate (soil) with a disk harrow.

disk

/ dɪsk /

noun

1. a variant spelling (esp US and Canadian) of disc
2. Also calledmagnetic diskhard disk computing a direct-access storage device consisting of a stack of plates coated with a magnetic layer, the whole assembly rotating rapidly as a single unit. Each surface has a read-write head that can move radially to read or write data on concentric tracks Compare drum 1 See also floppy disk

disk

/ dĭsk /

1. 1. See magnetic disk
   2. See optical disk
2. See intervertebral disk
3. The round, flat center, consisting of many disk flowers, found in the inflorescences of many composite plants such as the daisy.

Other Words From

• disklike adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of disk¹

First recorded in 1655–65; from Latin discus discus; dish

Example Sentences

Martin has a squashed disk in her spine and finds the waterbed is easier on her hips.

From Los Angeles Times

The researchers led by Northwestern University's Nick Kaaz, a graduate student in astronomy, used computer simulations to determine that the black hole causes rotations which warp the accretion disk in such a way that the gas actually starts caving in on itself.

From Salon

Eventually the entire accretion disk is torn in half, with the black hole first consuming the inner disc and then the outer one.

From Salon

But Akinkunmi’s was a simple affair, with equal green-white-green vertical stripes - and it replaced the colonial flag that had included the British union jack and a six-pointed green star under a red disk.

From BBC

Mr Richards wants people to stop buying the plastic rings and to use the "solid traditional disk frisbee instead".

From BBC

Related Words

• disc
• plate
• platter