ENTROPY

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does entropy mean? 

• ENTROPY (noun)
  The noun ENTROPY has 2 senses:

1. (communication theory) a numerical measure of the uncertainty of an outcome

2. (thermodynamics) a thermodynamic quantity representing the amount of energy in a system that is no longer available for doing mechanical work

  Familiarity information: ENTROPY used as a noun is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• ENTROPY (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

(communication theory) a numerical measure of the uncertainty of an outcome

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Synonyms:

entropy; information; selective information

Context example:

the signal contained thousands of bits of information

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

information measure (a system of measurement of information based on the probabilities of the events that convey information)

Domain category:

communication theory; communications (the discipline that studies the principles of transmiting information and the methods by which it is delivered (as print or radio or television etc.))

Sense 2

Meaning:

(thermodynamics) a thermodynamic quantity representing the amount of energy in a system that is no longer available for doing mechanical work

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Synonyms:

entropy; randomness; S

Context example:

entropy increases as matter and energy in the universe degrade to an ultimate state of inert uniformity

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

physical property (any property used to characterize matter and energy and their interactions)

Domain category:

thermodynamics (the branch of physics concerned with the conversion of different forms of energy)

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

conformational entropy (entropy calculated from the probability that a state could be reached by chance alone)

 Context examples 

A SI unit of molar entropy used also as a unit of molar heat capacity.

(Joule per Mole-Kelvin, NCI Thesaurus)

A SI unit of specific entropy.

(Joule per Kilogram-Kelvin, NCI Thesaurus)

A SI unit of entropy used also as a unit of heat capacity.

(Joule per Kelvin, NCI Thesaurus)