tau

[ tou, taw for 1, 2, 4; tahv, tawv for 3 ]

noun
  1. the 19th letter of the Greek alphabet (T, τ).

  2. the consonant sound represented by this letter.

  1. tav.

  2. Also tau·on [tou-on] /ˈtaʊ ɒn/ .Physics. tau lepton.

  3. Also called tau protein .Biochemistry. a protein that is an important component of nerve cells, helping to maintain their function and structure: in the brain, distortions in the protein’s molecular shape is associated with the onset of Alzheimer’s disease.

Origin of tau

1
1250–1300; Middle English <Latin <Greek taû<Semitic; cf. tav

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use tau in a sentence

  • You know we are all Phi Sigma Taus and it seems so strange to see you looking so stately and grown up.

  • A pretty form of guitar, shaped and painted like a peacock, is known as a taus.

    Beast and Man in India | John Lockwood Kipling
  • What troubled him was only the consciousness that he had given her and innocent little Taus every reason to curse their meeting.

    Arachne, Complete | Georg Ebers
  • Besides, he seemed to have eyes only for Taus and the daughters of Hiram.

    Arachne, Complete | Georg Ebers
  • And for what did my Taus, poor lovely child, seem desirable?

    Arachne, Complete | Georg Ebers

British Dictionary definitions for tau

tau

/ (tɔː, taʊ) /


noun
  1. the 19th letter in the Greek alphabet (Τ, τ), a consonant, transliterated as t

Origin of tau

1
C13: via Latin from Greek, of Semitic origin; see tav

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012