diffusion

See also: Diffusion

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin diffusionem (accusative of diffusio), from verb diffundere; can be decomposed as diffuse +‎ -ion.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /dɪˈfjuːʒən/
• Rhymes: -uːʒən

Noun

diffusion (countable and uncountable, plural diffusions)

1. The act of diffusing or dispersing something, or the property of being diffused or dispersed; dispersion.
2. (physics) The scattering of light by reflection from a rough surface, or by passage through a translucent medium.
3. (physics) The intermingling of the molecules of a fluid due to random thermal agitation.
4. The spread of cultural or linguistic practices, or social institutions, in one or more communities.
5. (physics, weather) Exchange of airborne media between regions in space in an apparently random motion of a small scale.
6. The movement of water vapor from regions of high concentration (high water vapor pressure) toward regions of lower concentration.

Translations

(physics) the intermingling of the molecules

• Catalan: difusió (ca) f
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 擴散／扩散 (zh) (kuòsàn), 扩散 (zh) (kuòsàn)

• Czech: difuze f
• French: diffusion (fr) f
• German: Diffusion (de) f
• Japanese: 拡散 (ja) (かくさん, kakusan)
• Maori: ingotanga
• Polish: dyfuzja (pl) f
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Portuguese: difusão (pt) f
• Romanian: difuzie (ro) f
• Russian: диффу́зия (ru) f (diffúzija)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: дифузија f

  Roman: difuzija (sh) f

• Spanish: difusión (es) f
• Tagalog: panunuot

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Irish: ^{(please verify)} idirleathadh m
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}

See also

• diffuser

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French

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin diffusio, diffusionem. Synchronically analysable as diffuser +‎ -ion.

Noun

diffusion f (plural diffusions)

1. broadcasting, showing
2. dissemination, diffusion (of culture, knowledge, etc.)
3. circulation (of a news medium)
4. (physics) diffusion

Related terms

• diffus
• diffuser

See also

• émission

Further reading

• “diffusion”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.