fixed disk
- noun
- /fɪkst dɪsk/
- Specialized
:
disco duro
- To back up your files, make sure you save them to the fixed disk of your computer.
Examples
-
He replaced the old fixed disk with a faster solid-state drive for better performance.
-
One device consisted of a fixed disk and a rotating contact tip, which could measure the contour of a cross-section of an amputee's residual limb at any chosen level.
Academic text (2001) -
PHOTO (BLACK & WHITE): Isolation mounts can protect disk drives, such as this 30-MB Q2000 8-inch fixed disk drive, from shock and vibration during shipping and use.
Academic text (1993) -
The computer's fixed disk can store hundreds of gigabytes of data.
Synonyms
191
2.8
A flat round object that stores computer data using magnets
106
2.8
A device inside a computer that stores files and lets you open them
12
3.0
A fixed part inside a computer that stores files and data
6
3.5
A device in a computer that holds and spins a disk to read or write data
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a rigid magnetic disk permanently installed' is directly derivable from combining 'fixed' (attached, not movable) with 'disk' (a magnetic storage device). This adjective+noun composition follows normal, cross-linguistically common modification patterns in technical vocabulary, so a B1 learner who knows both words would readily understand the MWE.
Etymology
Fixed disk comes from early computers where information sat on round metal plates called disk, and some plates were built into the machine and could not be taken out — they were 'fixed' in place. That's why fixed disk means a rigid disk inside the computer used to 'store data'.