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torsion

Syllabification: (tor·sion)
Pronunciation: /ˈtôrSHən/

Definition of torsion

noun

  • the action of twisting or the state of being twisted, especially of one end of an object relative to the other.
  • Mathematics the extent to which a curve departs from being planar.
  • Zoology (in a gastropod mollusk) the spontaneous twisting of the visceral hump through 180° during larval development.

Derivatives

torsional

Pronunciation: /-SHənl/

adjective

torsionally

Pronunciation: /-SHənl-ē/

adverb

torsionless

adjective

Origin:

late Middle English (as a medical term denoting colic or in the sense 'twisting' (especially of a loop of the intestine)): via Old French from late Latin torsio(n-), variant of tortio(n-) 'twisting, torture', from Latin torquere 'to twist'

torsion in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of torsion in the British & World English dictionary

Nearby words

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