electricity
Definition from Wiktionary, the free dictionary
Contents |
English [edit]
Etymology [edit]
Pronunciation [edit]
- (UK) IPA: /ˌiːlekˈtɹɪsᵻti/, /ᵻˌlɛkˈtɹɪsᵻti/, /ˌɛlɪkˈtɹɪsᵻti/
- (US) IPA: /əˌlɛkˈtɹɪsᵻdi/, /iˌlɛkˈtɹɪsᵻdi/
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Audio (US) (file)
Noun [edit]
electricity (usually uncountable; plural electricities)
- A property of amber and certain other substances to attract lightweight material when rubbed, or the cause of this property; now understood to be a form of energy (occurring in positive and negative modes) which is a fundamental property of electrons and certain other subatomic particles. [from 17th c.]
- 1646, Sir Thomas Browne, Pseudodoxia Epidemica, 1st edition, p. 51:
- The concretion of Ice will not endure a dry attrition without liquation; for if it be rubbed long with a cloth, it melteth. But Crystal will calefie unto electricity; that is, a power to attract strawes and light bodies, and convert the needle freely placed.
- 1747, Benjamin Franklin, letter, 28 Jul 1747:
- Restoring the equilibrium in the bottle does not at all affect the Electricity in the man.
- 1837, William Leithead, Electricity, p. 5:
- Attraction, then, is the first phenomenon that arrests our attention, and it is one that is constantly attendant on excitation. It is therefore considered a sure indicator of the presence of electricity in an active state, and forms the basis of all its tests.
- 1873, James Clerk Maxwell, A Treatise on Electricity and Magnetism:
- We may express all these results in a concise and consistent manner by describing an electrified body as charged with a certain quantity of electricity, which we may denote by e.
- 2011, Jon Henley, The Guardian, 29 Mar 2011:
- How does it work, though? It's based on the observation made some 200 years ago that electricity can change the shape of flames.
- 1646, Sir Thomas Browne, Pseudodoxia Epidemica, 1st edition, p. 51:
- The study of such energy; the branch of science dealing with electrical phenomena. [from 18th c.]
- A feeling of excitement; a thrill. [from 18th c.]
- Opening night for the new production had an electricity unlike other openings.
- Electric power as used in homes etc., supplied by power stations or generators. [from 19th c.]
- 2000, James Meek, Home-made answer to generating electricity harks back to the past, The Guardian:
- Householders could one day be producing as much electricity as all the country's nuclear power stations combined, thanks to the revolutionary application of a device developed in the early 19th century.
- 2000, James Meek, Home-made answer to generating electricity harks back to the past, The Guardian:
Related terms [edit]
Translations [edit]
form of energy
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electric power
See also [edit]
References [edit]
- Equivalent text in Pseudodoxia Epidemica, 6th edition (1672), p. 53
- Niels H. de V. Heathcote (December 1967). "The early meaning of electricity: Some Pseudodoxia Epidemica - I". Annals of Science 23 (4): pp. 261-275.
