vis viva

English

Etymology

From Latin, meaning "live force", coined by Gottfried W. Leibniz in order to denote a quantity discovered by Christiaan Huygens.

Noun

vis viva

1. (physics, obsolete) The product of an object's mass and the square of its speed.

   Antonym: vis mortua

Usage notes

• It is exactly twice what is now called kinetic energy.

Derived terms

• vis viva equation

Related terms

• vital force
• vitality

See also

• E=mc²
• life force