heat sink

noun

: a substance or device that absorbs or dissipates especially unwanted heat (as from a process or an electronic device)

Examples of heat sink in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
This paper-thin profile allows them to be integrated directly onto heat sinks, chassis walls, or internal components, enabling ultra-thin laptop designs that were previously impossible to cool. Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 3 Jan. 2026 The safest way to do this is to use a heat sink such as a jug filled with hot water or stones warmed in the sun. Kim Toscano, Southern Living, 11 Dec. 2025 All that’s needed, the researchers say, is to connect a quantum system to a second system that can store information about it, and to a heat sink: a body that’s able to absorb a lot of energy. Philip Ball, Wired News, 2 Nov. 2025 Thermoelectric materials flex and create pulses inside the slim modules, pushing air through a heat sink noiselessly, with no spinning parts or fan bearings that are prone to fail over time. John Burek, PC Magazine, 24 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for heat sink

Word History

First Known Use

1936, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of heat sink was in 1936

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Cite this Entry

“Heat sink.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/heat%20sink. Accessed 10 Jan. 2026.

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