Definition of "filament" []

• A fine or thinly spun thread, fiber, or wire. (noun)
• Botany The stalk that bears the anther in a stamen. (noun)
• Botany A chainlike series of cells, as in many algae. (noun)
• A fine wire heated electrically to incandescence in an electric lamp. (noun)
• Electronics A high-resistance wire or ribbon forming the cathode in some thermionic tubes. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "I dangled between two worlds on a thin filament and felt it fray."
• "A medium - to lightweight spinning setup spooled with 6 - or 8-pound mono-filament is perfect."
• "The lamps were of the incandescent variety, and what we now know as the filament was platinum wire."