Electronics

How to spell electronics

11 letters · 4 syllables

How to pronounce electronics

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does electronics mean?

1. nounThe branch of technology and engineering concerned with circuits and devices that control the flow of electrons, or such devices collectively.

Electronics in a sentence

• He studied electronics at university before joining the design team.

• The shop sells phones, laptops, and other consumer electronics.

Where does electronics come from?

Language of origin: Greek

The word grows out of the Greek elektron, which literally meant 'amber', the fossilised tree resin that ancient Greeks noticed could attract light objects after being rubbed. In the late 1500s the English scientist William Gilbert built the Latin term electricus, 'like amber', to describe this attracting force, and from it came 'electric' and 'electricity'. In 1891 the physicist George Johnstone Stoney coined 'electron' for the tiny negative charge, attaching the suffix that already sat inside words like 'ion'. 'Electronics' arrived in the early twentieth century as devices using the controlled flow of electrons (valves, then transistors) were developed, with the '-ics' ending marking it as a field of study and practice, just as in 'physics' and 'mechanics'. The spelling stays faithful to that amber root, which is why it begins 'electr-' and not 'elektr-' despite the Greek origin.

How the word is built

• electr- (from Greek elektron: amber)
• -on (particle suffix, as in electron)
• -ics (field of study suffix)