What is "semiring"

Semiring \Sem"i*ring`\ (s[e^]m"[i^]*r[i^]ng`), n. (Anat.) One of the incomplete rings of the upper part of the bronchial tubes of most birds. The semirings form an essential part of the syrinx, or musical organ, of singing birds.

n. 1 (context algebra English) An algebraic structure similar to a ring, but without the requirement that each element must have an additive inverse. 2 (context anatomy English) One of the incomplete rings of the upper part of the bronchial tubes of most birds, forming an essential part of the syrinx of songbirds.

In abstract algebra, a semiring is an algebraic structure similar to a ring, but without the requirement that each element must have an additive inverse.

The term rig is also used occasionally — this originated as a joke, suggesting that rigs are rings without negative elements, similar to using rng to mean a ring without a multiplicative identity.