hemispheric

adjective

hemi·​spher·​ic ˌhe-mə-ˈsfir-ik  -ˈsfer- 

variants or less commonly hemispherical

ˌhe-mə-ˈsfir-i-kəl 

-ˈsfer-

1

usually hemispherical : having the shape of a half of a sphere or a roughly spherical body : having the shape of a hemisphere

a hemispherical bowl

The hemispherical combustion chamber has been around since the early 1900s but found limited production acceptance until the middle part of the century.

—Owen Brady

The ground erupts in perfectly hemispheric hills that the locals call knobs.

—Alex Halberstadt

2

: relating to or representing one of the hemispheres (see hemisphere sense 1b) of the earth

… analyses of global, hemispheric and regional climate change over the last century …

—Daniel J. Leathers

Previous studies report hemispherical anomalies for seismic P waves propagating through the uppermost isotropic inner core …

—Marc Monnereau et al.

Thousands of anti-globalization protesters are expected to show up this week in Quebec as heads of state from 34 nations arrived to discuss a hemispheric free-trade zone.

—Susannah Meadows et al.

3

anatomy : of, relating to, or involving one of the brain's two cerebral hemispheres

right hemispheric ischemic stroke

Apraxia, or difficulty in selecting appropriate hand movements, is very common after left hemispheric damage.

—Doreen Kimura

Examples of hemispheric in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The former aspires to global, or at least hemispheric, coverage, while the latter is inevitably a little blinkered. —Colton Valentine, New Yorker, 24 Jan. 2026

Mass deporting migrants, brazenly axing federal grants and jobs, pursuing an inflationary trade war, risking the lives of soldiers to trouble the sovereignty of hemispheric neighbors—these things are shaking the everyday lives of Americans. —Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 20 Jan. 2026

Knaff had been fighting cancer since November 2022, when he was diagnosed with a grade 4 H3G34 mutant diffuse hemispheric glioma, or more simply put, glioblastoma. —Ashlyn Robinette, PEOPLE, 14 Jan. 2026

Establishing hemispheric hegemony is vital. —Nicole Russell, USA Today, 8 Jan. 2026

Word History

Etymology

hemispheric in part from hemisphere + -ic entry 1, in part borrowed from Middle French hemispherique; hemispherical from hemispheric + -al entry 1

First Known Use

1577, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for hemispheric

• panegyric
• stratospheric
• balearic
• empiric
• etheric
• satiric
• interhemispheric
• lyric
• pyrrhic
• stearic

Kids Definition

hemispheric

adjective

hemi·​spher·​ic

ˌhem-ə-ˈsfi(ə)r-ik, 

-ˈsfer-

variants or hemispherical

-ˈsfir-i-kəl, 

-ˈsfer-

: of or relating to a hemisphere

Medical Definition

hemispheric

adjective

hemi·​spher·​ic -ˈsfi(ə)r-ik  -ˈsfer- 

: of, relating to, or affecting a hemisphere (as a cerebral hemisphere)

hemispheric lesions

hemispheric localization of function