magnet
nounAU, CA, US, UK /ˈmæɡ.nɪt/ · South-Asia /mæɡnɛʈ/
Etymology From Middle English magnete, via Old French magnete, Latin magnēs, magnētem (“lodestone”), from Ancient Greek μαγνῆτις [λίθος] (magnêtis [líthos], “Magnesian [stone]”), either after the Lydian city Magnesia ad Sipylum (modern-day Manisa, Turkey), or after the Greek region of Μαγνησία (Magnēsía) (whence came the colonists who founded the city in Lydia). Related to manganese, magnesia and magnesium.
1
A piece of material that attracts some metals by magnetism.
2
Figuratively, In compounds, Informal, Often An alluring or attractive person or thing.
- He always had a girl on his arm – he's a bit of a babe magnet.
- Iron and coal were the magnets that drew railways to this land of lovely valleys and silent mountains—for such it was a century-and-a-half ago, before man blackened the valleys with the smoke of his forges, scarred the green hills with his shafts and waste-heaps, and drove the salmon from the quiet Rhondda and the murmuring Taff.1939 September, D. S. Barrie, “The Railways of South Wales”, in Railway Magazine, page 157:
3 more examples
- Again, dude? Man, you just a MAGNET for trouble!2004, Intelligent Systems, translated by Nintendo of America, Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, Nintendo, GameCube, level/area: Glitzville:
- […] I wanted to show Nick the largest of the water holes, Rigueik, that act as magnets to life in the dry season.2007 March, J. Michael Fay, “Ivory Wars: Last Stand in Zakouma”, in National Geographic, section 47:
- Regular baths will help keep your dog clean and fresh-smelling. The frequency will depend entirely on your own preferences as well as how much of a mud-magnet your dog is!2022, Steve Mann, Easy Peasy Cocker Spaniel:
3
Internet, Abbreviation, Ellipsis Ellipsis of magnet link.
- Magnets are thus used to create a package of cryptologic information and bundling^([sic]) it together.2019, David Adams, Ann-Kathrin Maier, Big Seven Study (2016): 7 open source Crypto-Messengers to be compared, page 142:
- Derived terms
67 terms
antiferromagnet, cop magnet, corrector magnet, cow magnet, diamagnet, electret, electro-magnet, fanny magnet, ferrimagnet, ferromagnet, field magnet, fist magnet, helimagnet, magnetarium, magnet fishing, magnetic, magnetical, magnetics, magnetify, magnetimeter, magnetise, magnetize, magnetism, magnetod, magnetite, magnetization, magnetless, magnetlike, magneto, magnetoid, magnetoionic, magnetionic, magnetology, magneton, magnetorquer, magnet play, magnetricity, magnetron, magnet therapy, metamagnet, micromagnet, Mount Magnet, nanomagnet, neodymium magnet, nonmagnet, oven magnet, paramagnet, photo magnet, photomagnet, pussy magnet, rare earth magnet, refrigerator magnet, single-molecule magnet, speromagnet, supermagnet, welfare magnet, babe magnet, bar magnet, bitch magnet, chick magnet, electromagnet, fridge magnet, magnet link, magnet school, man magnet, permanent magnet, track magnet- Coordinate terms
- electret