semisolid

adjective

semi·​sol·​id ˌse-mē-ˈsä-ləd How to pronounce semisolid (audio)
ˌse-ˌmī-,
-mi-
: having the qualities of both a solid and a liquid : highly viscous
semisolid noun

Examples of semisolid in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
These examples are automatically compiled from online sources to illustrate current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
The resulting semisolid curds and clear whey are further manipulated for different kinds of tofu. Andrea Nguyen, New York Times, 7 Apr. 2023 Bologna is a semisolid meat product made from one or more livestock sources, most commonly beef or pork, and may contain poultry meat. Elsbeth Sites, Discover Magazine, 27 Oct. 2015 Thick semisolid formulas, gel deodorants go on wet and dry quickly for complete and lasting protection. Grooming Playbook, The Salt Lake Tribune, 12 June 2022 Roughly 90 percent of quakes on Earth are produced by the movement of tectonic plates, massive slabs of the planet’s lithosphere that slide around atop the semisolid asthenosphere layer and occasionally bump into one another. Joanna Thompson, Scientific American, 24 May 2022 Petroleum jelly, which is also known as petrolatum and was first sold by Vaseline, is a white or yellowish semisolid substance made up of a mixture of complex hydrocarbons by dewaxing crude oil. Washington Post, 17 Dec. 2021 Probably to help conserve water, most birds put their excess nitrogen exclusively into uric acid, which is much less soluble than urea and so can be excreted as a semisolid paste along with wastes from the digestive tract. Harold McGee, Wired, 6 Nov. 2020 Patients ingest Palforzia, which is a powder made from peanuts, by mixing it with small amounts of semisolid food like applesauce, yogurt or pudding. Doug Stanglin, USA TODAY, 1 Feb. 2020 Emulsions are always more viscous than either of their independent constituents, which is what gives mayonnaise its semisolid texture. J. Kenji López-Alt, New York Times, 29 Oct. 2019

Word History

First Known Use

1834, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of semisolid was in 1834

Dictionary Entries Near semisolid

Cite this Entry

“Semisolid.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/semisolid. Accessed 19 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

semisolid

adjective
semi·​sol·​id ˌsem-i-ˈsäl-əd How to pronounce semisolid (audio)
ˌsem-ˌī-
: having the qualities of both a solid and a liquid
semisolid noun

Medical Definition

semisolid

adjective
semi·​sol·​id -ˈsäl-əd How to pronounce semisolid (audio)
: having the qualities of both a solid and a liquid : highly viscous
semisolid waste

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