wafer

[ wey-fer ]

noun

1. a thin, crisp cake or biscuit, often sweetened and flavored.
2. a thin disk of unleavened bread, used in the Eucharist, as in the Roman Catholic Church.
3. a thin disk of dried paste, gelatin, adhesive paper, or the like, used for sealing letters, attaching papers, etc.
4. Medicine/Medical. a thin sheet of dry paste or the like, used to enclose a powder to be swallowed.
5. any small, thin disk, as a washer or piece of insulation.
6. Electronics. a thin slice of semiconductor used as a base material on which single transistors or integrated-circuit components are formed.

verb (used with object)

1. to seal, close, or attach by means of a wafer or wafers:

   to wafer a letter.

wafer

/ ˈweɪfə /

noun

1. a thin crisp sweetened biscuit with different flavourings, served with ice cream, etc
2. Christianity a thin disc of unleavened bread used in the Eucharist as celebrated by the Western Church
3. pharmacol an envelope of rice paper enclosing a medicament
4. electronics a large single crystal of semiconductor material, such as silicon, on which numerous integrated circuits are manufactured and then separated
5. a small thin disc of adhesive material used to seal letters, documents, etc

verb

1. tr to seal, fasten, or attach with a wafer

Derived Forms

• ˈwafer-ˌlike, adjective

Other Words From

• wafer·like wafer·y adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of wafer¹

1350–1400; Middle English wafre < Middle Dutch wafer, variant of wafel waffle ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of wafer¹

C14: from Old Northern French waufre, from Middle Low German wāfel; related to waffle ¹

Example Sentences

Multiple chips are etched onto the same wafer and then the wafer is cut into individual chips.

From Singularity Hub 

While the WSE is also etched onto a silicon wafer, the wafer is left intact as a single, operating unit.

From Singularity Hub 

Because one of the things this pandemic is doing — it is an absolute catastrophe for America’s small businesses, for cities’ small businesses who came into this with a very thin wafer of financial cushion.

From Freakonomics

They also came up with another tactic where, instead of soaking the wafer in a solution, they applied a small amount of the solution on the surface of the wafer.

From Singularity Hub 

If the wafer is then removed from the solution and dried, the deposited CNTs stay in place.

From Singularity Hub 

Francis promptly picked up the phone and told her go ahead and take the wafer.

From The Daily Beast

Wafer would often ride a bike or taxi to drinking establishments in his neighborhood rather than risk driving, the woman said.

From The Daily Beast

According to a former girlfriend who asked not to be identified, Wafer was a heavy drinker during at least part of his life.

From The Daily Beast

Wafer came from a large family and grew up in the Detroit area.

From The Daily Beast

A 911 tape released indicated that Wafer called police after he shot McBride to report the incident, then hung up.

From The Daily Beast

Lionel Wafer in his travels upon the Isthmus of Darien in 1699 saw the plant growing and cultivated by the natives.

From Project Gutenberg

Sometimes a thick wafer can be split into two, which will answer a very good purpose; but at others, both parts fall to pieces.

From Project Gutenberg

Leslie took a small jam wafer and proceeded to nibble it quietly.

From Project Gutenberg

To people in business, cits, snobs, a wafer—but still a wafer—gently dipped in water.

From Project Gutenberg

Using the rosette tube in the bag, make a single rosette in the center of each wafer.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• biscuit
• cake
• candy
• cookie
• cracker