Merriam-Webster Logo
SINCE 1828
Menu
×

An Encyclopædia Britannica Company

See What's Trending Now See More Trending Words

optoelectronics

play
noun, plural in form but singular in construction op·to·elec·tron·ics \ˌäp-(ˌ)tō-i-lek-ˈträ-niks, -ē-lek-\

Definition of optoelectronics

  1. :  a branch of electronics that deals with electronic devices for emitting, modulating, transmitting, and sensing light

optoelectronic

play \ˌäp-(ˌ)tō-i-lek-ˈträ-nik, -ē-lek-\ adjective

Explore M-W

alt-599ddb983a439
Trending: 'Acrostic' Spikes Following Hidden Messages in Letters of Resignation
time-traveler-quiz-which-word-came-first
Time Traveler Quiz: Which Word Came First?
video-title-words-of-the-year-1066
Words of the Year: 1066
a-woman-waits-at-the-end-of-a-gloomy-pier-does-she-wait-for-charon-the-ferryman-to-the-underworld-it-is-dark-but-she-carries-a-parasol
Vocabulary Thrives in Darkness

First Known Use of optoelectronics

1959

Learn More about optoelectronics

  1. Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about optoelectronics

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up optoelectronics? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show hide

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

WORD OF THE DAY

flagrant

play

conspicuously offensive

Get Word of the Day daily email!

TRENDING NOW

  1. acrostic "The initial letters form a word"

  2. Svengali 'A person who manipulates'

  3. syzygy An obscure astronomy term goes mainstream

  4. hegemon "Something having dominant influence over others"

  5. repugnant Trump clarifies his position on racism

SEE ALL

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Words at Play

alt-599ca1388698f
Drawing a Conclusion About "Sketchy"

How did "sketchy" come to describe creeps?

2-pairs-of-scissors
What's the Singular of 'Scissors'?

A tricky, double-edged word origin.

a-woman-waits-at-the-end-of-a-gloomy-pier-does-she-wait-for-charon-the-ferryman-to-the-underworld-it-is-dark-but-she-carries-a-parasol
Great Words for Twilight and Darkness

Words for the goth in all of us

bunch-of-yellow-balloons-lit-by-the-sun
Helium: This Word Brought to You by a Solar Eclipse

And by the Sun, with some help from Greek.

Ask the Editors

video-title-words-of-the-year-1066
Words of the Year: 1066

Or, Why Pig Meat is Called 'Pork' and Cow Meat is Called 'Beef'

payday
How Often Is 'Biweekly'?

Don't get us started on 'bimonthly'

video-irregardless-grammar-peeve-blend-of-the-synonyms-irrespective-and-regardless
Irregardless

It is in fact a real word (but that doesn't mean you should use it).

video-moose-goose-weird-plurals
Weird Plurals

One goose, two geese. One moose, two... moose. What's up with that?

Word Games

time-traveler-quiz-which-word-came-first
Time Traveler Quiz: Which Word Came First?

Which word entered the English language first?

Take the quiz
name-more-food
Name More Food!

Test your knowledge of food vocabulary!

Take the quiz
Name That Thing
Name That Thing

Test your visual vocabulary with our 10-question challenge!

Take the quiz
Dictionary Devil
Dictionary Devil

The dictionary has been scrambled—can you put it back together?

Play the game