English

Adjective

viscous ‎(comparative more viscous, superlative most viscous)

1. Having a thick, sticky consistency between solid and liquid
   • 2014 December 23, Olivia Judson, “The hemiparasite season [print version: Under the hemiparasite, International New York Times, 24–25 December 2014, p. 7]”, in The New York Times:

     […] The flesh [of the mistletoe berry] is sticky, and forms strings and ribbons between my thumb and forefinger. For the mistletoe, this viscous goop – and by the way, viscous comes to English from viscum – is crucial. The stickiness means that, after eating the berries, birds often regurgitate the seeds and then wipe their bills on twigs – leading to the seeds' getting glued to the tree, where they can germinate and begin the cycle anew.

2. (physics) Of or pertaining to viscosity

Synonyms

• (having a thick consistency): syrupy, viscid, viscose, thickflowing

Antonyms

• (physics): inviscid

Derived terms

• viscously
• viscousness

Related terms

Translations

Old French

Etymology

Latin viscōsus.

Adjective

viscous m ‎(oblique and nominative feminine singular viscouse)

1. viscous (of a liquid, thick; tending to flow slowly)

Descendants

• Middle French: visqueux
  • English: viscous (borrowed)
  • French: visqueux

References

• viscous on the Anglo-Norman On-Line Hub