ENERGY

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 Dictionary entry overview: What does Energy mean? 

• ENERGY (noun)
  The noun ENERGY has 7 senses:

1. (physics) a thermodynamic quantity equivalent to the capacity of a physical system to do work; the units of energy are joules or ergs

2. forceful exertion

3. enterprising or ambitious drive

4. an imaginative lively style (especially style of writing)

5. a healthy capacity for vigorous activity

6. any source of usable power

7. the federal department responsible for maintaining a national energy policy of the United States; created in 1977

  Familiarity information: ENERGY used as a noun is common.

 Dictionary entry details 

• ENERGY (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

(physics) a thermodynamic quantity equivalent to the capacity of a physical system to do work; the units of energy are joules or ergs

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural phenomena

Synonyms:

energy; free energy

Context example:

energy can take a wide variety of forms

Hypernyms ("energy" is a kind of...):

physical phenomenon (a natural phenomenon involving the physical properties of matter and energy)

Domain category:

natural philosophy; physics (the science of matter and energy and their interactions)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "energy"):

energy level; energy state (a definite stable energy that a physical system can have; used especially of the state of electrons in atoms or molecules)

radiation (energy that is radiated or transmitted in the form of rays or waves or particles)

radiant energy (energy that is transmitted in the form of (electromagnetic) radiation; energy that exists in the absence of matter)

mechanical energy (energy in a mechanical form)

heat; heat energy (a form of energy that is transferred by a difference in temperature)

work ((physics) a manifestation of energy; the transfer of energy from one physical system to another expressed as the product of a force and the distance through which it moves a body in the direction of that force)

rest energy (the energy equivalent to the mass of a particle at rest in an inertial frame of reference; equal to the rest mass times the square of the speed of light)

electrical energy; electricity; power (energy made available by the flow of electric charge through a conductor)

chemical energy (that part of the energy in a substance that can be released by a chemical reaction)

binding energy; separation energy (the energy required to separate particles from a molecule or atom or nucleus; equals the mass defect)

atomic energy; nuclear energy (the energy released by a nuclear reaction)

alternative energy (energy derived from sources that do not use up natural resources or harm the environment)

activation energy; energy of activation (the energy that an atomic system must acquire before a process (such as an emission or reaction) can occur)

Derivation:

energize (cause to be alert and energetic)

energize (raise to a higher energy level)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Forceful exertion

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Synonyms:

energy; vigor; vigour; zip

Context example:

he's full of zip

Hypernyms ("energy" is a kind of...):

force; forcefulness; strength (physical energy or intensity)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "energy"):

athleticism; strenuosity (intense energy)

Derivation:

energetic (possessing or exerting or displaying energy)

energize (cause to be alert and energetic)

energize (raise to a higher energy level)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Enterprising or ambitious drive

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Synonyms:

energy; get-up-and-go; push

Context example:

Europeans often laugh at American energy

Hypernyms ("energy" is a kind of...):

drive (the trait of being highly motivated)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "energy"):

second wind (renewed energy or strength to continue an undertaking)

Derivation:

energetic (working hard to promote an enterprise)

energize (cause to be alert and energetic)

Sense 4

Meaning:

An imaginative lively style (especially style of writing)

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Synonyms:

energy; muscularity; vigor; vigour; vim

Context example:

a remarkable muscularity of style

Hypernyms ("energy" is a kind of...):

life; liveliness; spirit; sprightliness (animation and energy in action or expression)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "energy"):

verve; vitality (an energetic style)

Derivation:

energize (raise to a higher energy level)

Sense 5

Meaning:

A healthy capacity for vigorous activity

Classified under:

Nouns denoting stable states of affairs

Synonyms:

energy; vim; vitality

Context example:

he seemed full of vim and vigor

Hypernyms ("energy" is a kind of...):

good health; healthiness (the state of being vigorous and free from bodily or mental disease)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "energy"):

juice (energetic vitality)

ch'i; chi; ki; qi (the circulating life energy that in Chinese philosophy is thought to be inherent in all things; in traditional Chinese medicine the balance of negative and positive forms in the body is believed to be essential for good health)

Derivation:

energetic (possessing or exerting or displaying energy)

energize (cause to be alert and energetic)

energize (raise to a higher energy level)

Sense 6

Meaning:

Any source of usable power

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural phenomena

Context example:

the DOE is responsible for maintaining the energy policy

Hypernyms ("energy" is a kind of...):

physical phenomenon (a natural phenomenon involving the physical properties of matter and energy)

Sense 7

Meaning:

The federal department responsible for maintaining a national energy policy of the United States; created in 1977

Classified under:

Nouns denoting groupings of people or objects

Synonyms:

Department of Energy; DOE; Energy; Energy Department

Hypernyms ("Energy" is a kind of...):

executive department (a federal department in the executive branch of the government of the United States)

Meronyms (parts of "Energy"):

Department of Energy Intelligence; DOEI (an agency that collects political and economic and technical information about energy matters and makes the Department of Energy's technical and analytical expertise available to other members of the Intelligence Community)

 Context examples 

Alternatively, you can use these planets’ energies to further a business collaboration.

(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)

So what makes a person spend more or less energy?

(Spending more time standing helps increase energy expenditure and combats the effects of a sedentary lifestyle, University of Granada)

Corn is grown not only for food; it is also used as an important renewable energy source.

(Corn better used as food than biofuel, National Science Foundation)

Satellite measurements of energy reflected from the Arctic provide a picture of why earthshine peaks in the spring.

(Earthshine, NASA)

As to my friend, all his usual energy seemed to have deserted him.

(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

I had confidence, however, in my own youth and energy, and was convinced that in a very few years the concern would be as flourishing as ever.

(The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Fed up and rested, as soon as he was loosed he devoted all his energy to getting over the ground.

(Love of Life and Other Stories, by Jack London)

“You must act, man, or you are lost. Nothing but energy can save you. This is no time for despair.”

(The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

And when he had gone, she would return to her books with a keener zest and fresh store of energy.

(Martin Eden, by Jack London)

In what is called a target-of-opportunity observation, NuSTAR was redirected to take a look at high-energy X-rays from this source in the range of 3 to 79 kiloelectron volts.

(NuSTAR sees rare blurring of black hole light, NASA)