fermi

¹

[ fur-mee; Italian fer-mee ]

noun

, Physics.

1. a unit of length, 10− 15 m, used in measuring nuclear distances. : F

Fermi

²

[ fur-mee; Italian fer-mee ]

noun

1. En·ri·co [en-, ree, -koh, en-, ree, -kaw], 1901–54, Italian physicist, in the U.S. after 1939: Nobel Prize 1938.

Fermi

¹

/ ˈfɜːmɪ; ˈfɛrmi /

noun

1. FermiEnrico19011954MItalianSCIENCE: physicist Enrico (enˈriːko). 1901-54, Italian nuclear physicist, in the US from 1939. He was awarded a Nobel prize for physics in 1938 for his work on radioactive substances and nuclear bombardment and headed the group that produced the first controlled nuclear reaction (1942)

fermi

²

/ ˈfɜːmɪ /

noun

1. a unit of length used in nuclear physics equal to 10 ^–15metre

Fermi

/ fĕr′mē /

1. Italian-born American physicist who won a 1938 Nobel Prize for his research on neutrons. In 1942, with Leo Szilard, Fermi built the world's first nuclear reactor. He also discovered over 40 new isotopes, including the element fermium, which is named for him.

Word History and Origins

Origin of fermi¹

Named after E. Fermi

Word History and Origins

Origin of fermi¹

C20: named after Enrico Fermi

Example Sentences

I reserve for you some canti fermi and antiphons, which I wrote down at the time, and my little book describes the order of the various services and the meaning of the different ceremonies.

From Project Gutenberg