KELVIN

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does Kelvin mean? 

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

1. the basic unit of thermodynamic temperature adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites

2. British physicist who invented the Kelvin scale of temperature and pioneered undersea telegraphy (1824-1907)

  Familiarity information: KELVIN used as a noun is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• KELVIN (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

The basic unit of thermodynamic temperature adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites

Classified under:

Nouns denoting quantities and units of measure

Synonyms:

K; kelvin

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

temperature unit (a unit of measurement for temperature)

Sense 2

Meaning:

British physicist who invented the Kelvin scale of temperature and pioneered undersea telegraphy (1824-1907)

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Synonyms:

First Baron Kelvin; Kelvin; William Thompson

Instance hypernyms:

physicist (a scientist trained in physics)

 Context examples 

The Celsius degree (C) is the same size as a Kelvin and equal to (F - 32)/1.8.

(Celsius Scale, NCI Thesaurus)

The hottest side is nearly 4,400 degrees Fahrenheit (2,700 Kelvin), and the coolest is 2,060 degrees Fahrenheit (1,400 Kelvin).

(Spitzer Maps Climate Patterns on a Super-Earth, NASA)

These planets reach temperatures of more than 1,340 degrees Fahrenheit (1,000 Kelvin), and orbit their stars in as little as one or two days.

(Helium-Shrouded Planets May Be Common in Our Galaxy, NASA)

One degree Celsius represents the same temperature difference as one Kelvin.

(Degree Celsius, NCI Thesaurus)

For example, it now only works at extremely low temperatures of approximately 4 Kelvin, which corresponds to the temperature of liquid helium.

(Transistor that mimics neurons developed, SciDev.Net)

Named K2-229b, the planet is almost 20% larger than Earth but has a mass which is over two-and-a-half times greater — and reaches a dayside temperature of over 2000°C (2330 Kelvin).

(Mercury Not as Rare as Previously Thought, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

In this scale a degree Fahrenheit is 5/9ths of a Kelvin (or of a degree Celsius), and minus 40 degrees Fahrenheit is equal to minus 40 degrees Celsius.

(Degree Fahrenheit, NCI Thesaurus/CDISC)

One degree Fahrenheit is 5/9ths of a kelvin (or of a degree Celsius), and minus 40 degrees Fahrenheit is equal to minus 40 degrees Celsius.

(Degree Fahrenheit, NCI Thesaurus)

SI has a short list of base units defined in an absolute way without referring to any other units: the metre, the kilogram, the second, the ampere, the kelvin, the mole, and the candela.

(International System of Units, NCI Thesaurus)

Scientists closely examined hundreds of cold, dark craters called cold traps — at less than minus 260 degrees Fahrenheit (110 Kelvin), they are so chilly that very little of the ice turns into vapor in the course of a billion years.

(Where is the Ice on Ceres?, NASA)