SPHERICAL

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does spherical mean? 

• SPHERICAL (adjective)
  The adjective SPHERICAL has 2 senses:

1. of or relating to spheres or resembling a sphere

2. having the shape of a sphere or ball

  Familiarity information: SPHERICAL used as an adjective is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• SPHERICAL (adjective)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Of or relating to spheres or resembling a sphere

Classified under:

Relational adjectives (pertainyms)

Context example:

spherical geometry

Antonym:

nonspherical (not spherical)

Pertainym:

sphere (a solid figure bounded by a spherical surface (including the space it encloses))

Derivation:

sphere (any spherically shaped artifact)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Having the shape of a sphere or ball

Synonyms:

ball-shaped; global; globose; globular; orbicular; spheric; spherical

Context example:

little globular houses like mud-wasp nests

Similar:

circular; round (having the shape or form of a circle)

Derivation:

sphere (any spherically shaped artifact)

sphere (a three-dimensional closed surface such that every point on the surface is equidistant from the center)

sphericalness (the roundness of a 3-dimensional object)

 Context examples 

A species of gram negative, obligately intracellular, spherical shaped bacteria belonging to the phylum Chlamydiae.

(Chlamydophila psittaci, NCI Thesaurus)

A species of enveloped, spherical or pleomorphic viruses with a capsid with T=4 icosahedral symmetry in the Togaviridae family and Alphavirus genus.

(Barmah Forest Virus, NCI Thesaurus)

Any device that is spherical in shape.

(Ball Device Component, NCI Thesaurus)

A genus of enveloped, spherical, or pleomorphic viruses with T=4 icosahedral symmetry, in the family Togaviridae.

(Alphavirus, NCI Thesaurus)

A species of non-enveloped, spherical viruses with a capsid with T=3 icosahedral symmetry in the Picornaviridae family and Enterovirus genus.

(Coxsackie A Virus, NCI Thesaurus)

It is usually used to measure the size of round or spherical shapes.

(Diameter, NCI Dictionary)

A nanoscale spherical or capsule-shaped structure.

(Nanoparticle, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

The agarose-agarose macrobeads consist of two spherical agarose layers; the mouse RENCA cells are contained within the inner agarose layer.

(Mouse Renal Adenocarcinoma Cell-Encapsulated Agarose-Agarose Macrobeads, NCI Thesaurus)

Any small spherical group of cells containing a cavity.

(Follicle, NCI Thesaurus)

They found that Hygiea is spherical, potentially taking the crown from Ceres as the smallest dwarf planet in the Solar System.

(ESO Telescope Reveals What Could be the Smallest Dwarf Planet Yet in the Solar System, ESO)