Silicon Valley

American

noun

the area in northern California, southwest of San Francisco in the Santa Clara valley region, where many of the high-technology design and manufacturing companies in the semiconductor industry are concentrated.

Silicon Valley British

noun

an industrial strip in W California, extending S of San Francisco, in which the US information technology industry is concentrated
any area in which industries associated with information technology are concentrated

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Silicon Valley Cultural

A region on the San Francisco Peninsula in California where the miniaturized electronics industry is centered, so called because most of the devices built there are made of semiconductors such as silicon.

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The term is often used as a catchword to describe the development of high-tech industry (see also high-tech): “If we can attract this corporation to our town, we could become another Silicon Valley.”

Etymology

Origin of Silicon Valley

So called from the silicon wafers employed in semiconductor devices

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

He’s been known to scoop up shares before, including in 2023 when financial stocks sold off in the wake of Silicon Valley Bank’s failure.

From MarketWatch

He also repeated criticism that boards of directors in the UK sometimes lacked the expertise to nurture new technology in the way that American companies, particularly in Silicon Valley, have achieved.

From BBC

For many in Silicon Valley, that might mean AI will develop a consciousness of its own, become a godlike power—and replace human labor altogether.

From The Wall Street Journal

Analysts and even founders and venture capitalists across Silicon Valley joined the chorus.

From The Wall Street Journal

Claude’s maker, the Silicon Valley company Anthropic, is in a showdown over ethics with the Pentagon.

From Los Angeles Times

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023