Wafer

Pronunciation

• UK IPA: /ˈweɪfÉ™/
• Rhymes: -eɪfÉ™(r)

Origin

From Anglo-Norman wafre, waufre ( = Old French gaufre), from Middle Low German wāfel. Compare waffle.

Full definition of wafer

Noun

1. A light, thin, flat biscuit.
2. (religion) A thin disk of consecrated unleavened bread used in communion.
3. A soft disk originally made of flour, and later of gelatin or a similar substance, used to seal letters, attach papers etc.
• 1749, Henry Fielding, Tom Jones, Folio Society 1973, p. 202:The house supplied him with a wafer for his present purpose, with which, having sealed his letter, he returned hastily towards the brook side, in order to search for the things which he had there lost.
4. (electronics) A thin disk of silicon or other semiconductor on which an electronic circuit is produced.

Derived terms

• waferless
• waferlike
• wafery

Synonyms

• (religion) host

Verb

1. (transitive) To seal or close with a wafer.----