Handwavium
Definition, Meaning & Examples
Pronunciation /handˈweɪ.vi.əm/ · Part of speech noun
Quick meaning: Handwavium is a noun meaning (informal, fiction) Any hypothetical but unobtainable material with desirable engineering properties.
Meaning
(informal, fiction) Any hypothetical but unobtainable material with desirable engineering properties.
Example Sentences
She writes romantic fantasy and science fiction, and makes liberal use of the substance known as handwavium.
My handwavium was an invented mineral, but - reading up - what about platinum? Could I substitute platinum for handwavium?
It made no sense to him that their very impossibility was their pleasure. He puzzled over the spacecraft and their handwavium drives. "The thousand and one nights of Scheherazade, told by an engineering student who failed his graduation exams," was his literary judgment.
Synonyms for handwavium
Depending on context, synonyms include unobtainium.
Related Words
Related dictionary entries include wavemaker, wave-rider, waveshaper, widget, wirewater, waver.
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Sources & Attribution
FreeDictionaryAPI.com / Wiktionary · Original source · CC BY-SA 4.0
Dictionary data is provided by FreeDictionaryAPI.com and sourced from Wiktionary under its stated license.