metaverse
noun
meta·verse
ˈme-tə-ˌvərs 
plural metaverses
1
computing
: a persistent virtual (see virtual sense 2) environment that allows access to and interoperability of multiple individual virtual realities
To its proponents, the metaverse is the natural evolution of the internet. They envisage a sprawling network of interconnected virtual worlds for such diverse activities as gaming, watching live entertainment, … and collaborating on design projects.—
Edd Gent
Edd Gent
also
: any of the individual virtual environments that make up a metaverse
Metaverses are immersive three-dimensional virtual worlds in which people interact as avatars with each other and with software agents, using the metaphor of the real world but without its physical limitations. —Alanah Davis et al.
Alanah Davis et al. 2
cosmology
: the hypothetical combination of all co-existing or sequentially existing universes compare multiverse
Examples of metaverse in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Beyond the dying hype of the metaverse, the gaming industry as a whole appears to have peaked during the pandemic, and has struggled to recover after the return to work and school pulled more gamers out of their virtual worlds into the real one.
—Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 9 May 2024
That’s not exactly shocking in the virtual reality subsector of the tech industry: Apple’s rival headset-maker, Meta, has been losing money on its virtual reality dreams since Mark Zuckerberg first claimed the metaverse was the way of the future in 2021.
—Laura Bratton, Quartz, 1 May 2024
The company who staked its literal name on the metaverse?
—Susan Howson, Quartz, 2 Apr. 2024
Meta has lost more than $46 billion on the metaverse in recent years and has little to show for it, with more recent efforts focused on its AI business.
—Rachyl Jones, Fortune, 8 Feb. 2024
The goal was to better understand what parts of the world are investing in the metaverse, which sectors are seeing the most activity and in what areas, and what is the outlook for the industrial metaverse.
—Sheryl Estrada, Fortune, 5 Apr. 2024
A number of restaurant chains, including Wendy’s and Chipotle, set up digital camps in the metaverse as well.
—Angela L. Pagán / The Takeout, Quartz, 19 Mar. 2024
Consequently, appeals to ‘Web3’ and ‘the metaverse’ were absent from this February’s New York Fashion Week.
—Jackie Berardo, Forbes, 1 Mar. 2024
Both the metaverse and the fediverse are relatively new digital ecosystems — the first virtual reality headset company was started back in the 1980s, and the concept of the fediverse was introduced in 2010 by software developer Evan Prodromou.
—Laura Bratton, Quartz, 22 Mar. 2024
Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 9 May 2024
That’s not exactly shocking in the virtual reality subsector of the tech industry: Apple’s rival headset-maker, Meta, has been losing money on its virtual reality dreams since Mark Zuckerberg first claimed the metaverse was the way of the future in 2021.
—Laura Bratton, Quartz, 1 May 2024
The company who staked its literal name on the metaverse?
—Susan Howson, Quartz, 2 Apr. 2024
Meta has lost more than $46 billion on the metaverse in recent years and has little to show for it, with more recent efforts focused on its AI business.
—Rachyl Jones, Fortune, 8 Feb. 2024
The goal was to better understand what parts of the world are investing in the metaverse, which sectors are seeing the most activity and in what areas, and what is the outlook for the industrial metaverse.
—Sheryl Estrada, Fortune, 5 Apr. 2024
A number of restaurant chains, including Wendy’s and Chipotle, set up digital camps in the metaverse as well.
—Angela L. Pagán / The Takeout, Quartz, 19 Mar. 2024
Consequently, appeals to ‘Web3’ and ‘the metaverse’ were absent from this February’s New York Fashion Week.
—Jackie Berardo, Forbes, 1 Mar. 2024
Both the metaverse and the fediverse are relatively new digital ecosystems — the first virtual reality headset company was started back in the 1980s, and the concept of the fediverse was introduced in 2010 by software developer Evan Prodromou.
—Laura Bratton, Quartz, 22 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'metaverse.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Metaverse.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/metaverse. Accessed 14 May. 2024.
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