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hemisphere

Syllabification: (hem·i·sphere)
Pronunciation: /ˈheməˌsfi(ə)r/
Translate hemisphere | into French | into German | into Italian | into Spanish
Definition of hemisphere

noun

  • a half of a sphere.
  • a half of the earth, usually as divided into northern and southern halves by the equator, or into western and eastern halves by an imaginary line passing through the poles.
  • a half of the celestial sphere.
  • (also cerebral hemisphere) each of the two parts of the cerebrum (left and right) in the brain of a vertebrate.

Derivatives

hemispheric

Pronunciation: /ˌheməˈsfi(ə)rik, -ˈsferik/
adjective

hemispherical

adjective

hemispherically

adverb

Origin:

late Middle English (in the sense 'half the celestial sphere, the sky'): from Old French emisphere, via Latin from Greek hēmisphairion, from hēmi- 'half' + sphaira 'sphere'

hemisphere in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of hemisphere in the British & World English dictionary

Nearby words

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