Definify.com
Webster 1913 Edition
Tension
1.
The act of stretching or straining; the state of being stretched or strained to stiffness; the state of being bent strained;
as, the
. tension
of the muscles, tension
of the larynx2.
Fig.: Extreme strain of mind or excitement of feeling; intense effort.
3.
The degree of stretching to which a wire, cord, piece of timber, or the like, is strained by drawing it in the direction of its length; strain.
Gwilt.
4.
(Mech.)
The force by which a part is pulled when forming part of any system in equilibrium or in motion;
as, the
. tension
of a srting supporting a weight equals that weight5.
A device for checking the delivery of the thread in a sewing machine, so as to give the stitch the required degree of tightness.
6.
(Physics)
Expansive force; the force with which the particles of a body, as a gas, tend to recede from each other and occupy a larger space; elastic force; elasticity;
as, the
. tension
of vapor; the tension
of air7.
(Elec.)
The quality in consequence of which an electric charge tends to discharge itself, as into the air by a spark, or to pass from a body of greater to one of less electrical potential. It varies as the quantity of electricity upon a given area.
Tension brace
, or
Tension member
(Engin.)
, a brace or member designed to resist tension, or subjected to tension, in a structure.
– Tension rod
(Engin.)
, an iron rod used as a tension member to strengthen timber or metal framework, roofs, or the like.
Webster 1828 Edition
Tension
TEN'SION
,Noun.
1.
The act of stretching or straining; as the tension of the muscles.2.
The state of being stretched or strained to stiffness; or the state of being bent or strained; as, different degrees of tension in chords give different sounds; the greater the tension, the more acute the sound.3.
Distension.Definition 2024
tension
tension
See also: tensión
English
Noun
tension (countable and uncountable, plural tensions)
- Condition of being held in a state between two or more forces, which are acting in opposition to each other
- Psychological state of being tense.
- A feeling of nervousness, excitement, or fear that is created in a movie, book, etc.; suspense.
- (physics, engineering) State of an elastic object which is stretched in a way which increases its length.
- (physics, engineering) Force transmitted through a rope, string, cable, or similar object (used with prepositions on, in, or of, e.g., "The tension in the cable is 1000 N", to convey that the same magnitude of force applies to objects attached to both ends).
- (physics, engineering) Voltage. Usually only the terms low tension, high tension, and extra-high tension, and the abbreviations LT, HT, and EHT are used. They are not precisely defined; LT is normally a few volts, HT a few hundreds of volts, and EHT thousands of volts.
Related terms
Translations
psychological state
|
state of an elastic object
voltage
Verb
tension (third-person singular simple present tensions, present participle tensioning, simple past and past participle tensioned)