disk

noun, often attributive \ ˈdisk \

variants: or disc

|Updated on: 4 Aug 2018

Definition of disk

1 a : the seemingly flat figure of a celestial body

the solar disk

b archaic : discus

2 : any of various rounded and flattened animal anatomical structures; especially : intervertebral disk — compare slipped disk

3 : the central part of the flower head of a typical composite made up of closely packed tubular flowers

4 : a thin circular object: such as

a usually disc : a phonograph record

b : a round flat plate coated with a magnetic substance on which data for a computer is stored

c usually disc : optical disk: such as

(1) : videodisc

(2) : cd

5 usually disc : one of the concave circular steel tools with sharpened edge making up the working part of a disc harrow or plow; also : an implement employing such tools

—

disklike

play \-ˌlīk\ adjective

See disk defined for kids

Recent Examples of disk from the Web

The newborn star lit up with nuclear fusion, sending light and heat out into the spinning circumstellar disk.

— sarah kaplan, chicagotribune.com, "Many asteroids might be remnants of 5 destroyed worlds, scientists say," 3 July 2018
Astronomers had long considered that interstellar debris might invade the solar system from time to time, in the form of icy chunks spit from the rocky disks forming faraway planets, that is to say, as interstellar comets.

— dennis overbye, New York Times, "An Alien Visitor Turns Out to Be a Comet," 27 June 2018
All the stars that lie close to the imaginary flat disk swept out by this imaginary line are said to be in the zodiac.

— olivia b. waxman, Time, "Where Do Zodiac Signs Come From? Here's the True History Behind Your Horoscope," 21 June 2018
GameStop’s growth has been essentially flat over the last five years, as the rise of digital downloads has crimped demand for the new and used game disks that have typically accounted for a majority of its sales.

— dan gallagher, WSJ, "GameStop’s Next Life," 19 June 2018
His exit physical in January uncovered an injury to a disk at the C2 and C3 vertebrae in his neck, threatening the spinal cord.

— albert breer, SI.com, "A Spectator in Minicamp Week: Eric Wood on Retirement," 14 June 2018
Associated with divinity, royalty and power, the winged sun-disk is a common symbol of the pharaonic era.

— james rogers, Fox News, "Rare Roman discovery thrills experts: Emperor's marble head found at Egyptian temple site," 25 Apr. 2018
The disk was topped with a coin of truffle and covered in a sauce enriched with blood, Armagnac brandy, creme de cassis and a bit of dark cocoa powder.

— michael bauer, San Francisco Chronicle, "Why the restaurant Coi won’t be on this year’s Top 100 Restaurants list," 17 Apr. 2018
The disks can be cooked and refrigerated a few days in advance.

— sara moulton, sacbee, "Oy yah! Gotta love a brisket with matzoh ball dumplings | The Sacramento Bee," 20 Mar. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'disk.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.