hemispheric

/ˌheməsˈfɪɹɪk/heh-muhs-FIH-rik

/ˌhɛməsˈfɪɹɪk/heh-muhs-FIH-rik

Meaningrelating to a half ball

Common meaning: relating to hemisphere

hemihalfLiddell & Scott, Intermediate Greek-English Lexicon (1889), p. 352 · scan
spherround body, ballLiddell & Scott, Greek-English Lexicon (1883), p. 1510 (approximate) · scan
icadjective ending: relating to

‘half’ + ‘round body, ball’ → hemispheric

Journey through time

Only the hemi half is traced; the path of spher is not in our sources yet.

hemi Greek ἡμι- “half”

Greekἡμι-‘half’

spher Greek σφαῖρα “round body, ball” · path not traced

Parts join in Old French as hemisphere.

Old Frenchhemispheresource
Englishhemisphere‘one half of a ball or globe, esp. the earth’
Englishformed in English from hemispherehemispheric‘relating to hemisphere’ · today

Sources & notes

Inferred source: no dictionary we use has an entry for this exact word. Its history is worked out from closely related, listed words in the same family, and we are trusting that link, so bear that in mind. Inferred meaning: relating to a half ball. It can be inferred from any of: hemisphere.

Meaning: “Meaning” is the sense that emerges from the word’s roots; “Common meaning” is today’s everyday sense. Both written by us.

Pronunciation

UK IPA: converted from the US form by rule (unchecked). Respelling: generated.
No UK recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-GB voice.
US IPA: CMUdict (BSD-2), converted to IPA by rule. Respelling: generated.
No US recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-US voice.

Origin: Formed in English from hemisphere + -ic (inferred: this exact word is not listed in our dictionaries).

Roots

σφαῖρα Greek “round body, ball”
ἡμι- Greek “half”

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