Ceramic

How to spell ceramic

7 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce ceramic

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does ceramic mean?

1. adjectiveMade of clay that has been shaped and hardened by firing at high temperature.
2. nounA hard, brittle material made by firing clay, or an object made from it.

Ceramic in a sentence

• adjective

  The kitchen counter was lined with ceramic tiles that wiped clean easily.

• noun

  The artist sold hand-painted ceramic at the weekend market.

• adjective

  She replaced the chipped mug with a sturdy ceramic one from the studio.

• noun

  Engineers chose a heat-resistant ceramic for the engine component.

Where does ceramic come from?

Language of origin: Greek

This word traces back to the Greek keramos, which literally meant 'potter's clay' or the earthenware made from it, and it may itself stem from an older root tied to burning or firing, fitting for a material hardened in a kiln. The Greeks also had a district of Athens called Kerameikos, the potters' quarter, named for the same clay. The adjective keramikos described anything relating to pottery, and that form was borrowed into English in the mid-nineteenth century, around the 1850s, as the craft of fired clay attracted scientific and industrial interest. From there 'ceramic' broadened to cover not just pots but tiles, electrical insulators, and advanced engineered materials. The spelling trap is the opening: it begins with a soft 'c' that sounds like 's', so writers must remember the Greek-style 'cer' start rather than an 's', and the single 'r' followed by the stressed 'am' rather than a doubled consonant.

How the word is built

• ceram- (from Greek keramos: potter's clay)
• -ic (adjective/noun suffix)