atmosphere

American  

[at-muhs-feer] / ˈæt məsˌfɪər /

noun

1. the gaseous envelope surrounding the earth; the air.

   a weather balloon rising high into the atmosphere.

2. this medium at a given place.

   the warm, dry atmosphere of the Joshua tree's natural environment.

3. Astronomy. the gaseous envelope surrounding a heavenly body.

   The white ovals seen in Saturn's atmosphere could be intense storms.

4. Chemistry. any gaseous envelope or medium.

   The ether was treated with a sulfate in an atmosphere of coal gas.

5. a conventional unit of pressure, the normal pressure of the air at sea level, about 14.7 pounds per square inch (101.3 kilopascals), equal to the pressure exerted by a column of mercury 29.92 inches (760 millimeters) high. atm.

6. a surrounding or pervading mood, environment, or influence.

   an atmosphere of impending war;

   a very tense atmosphere.

7. the dominant mood or emotional tone of a work of art, as of a play or novel.

   the chilly atmosphere of a ghost story.

8. a distinctive quality, as of a place; character.

   The old part of town has lots of atmosphere.

9. Radio, Television, Movies. Also atmospheres, atmos the background sound that is present, or would naturally be present, in the location where a recording or broadcast is made, often recorded as a separate track and then mixed; ambient sound.

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verb (used with object)

atmosphered, atmosphering

1. to give an atmosphere to.

   The author had cleverly atmosphered the novel for added chills.

atmosphere British  

/ ˈætməsˌfɪə /

noun

1. the gaseous envelope surrounding the earth or any other celestial body See also troposphere stratosphere mesosphere ionosphere

2. the air or climate in a particular place

   the atmosphere was thick with smoke

3. a general pervasive feeling or mood

   an atmosphere of elation

4. the prevailing tone or mood of a novel, symphony, painting, or other work of art

5. a special mood or character associated with a place

6. any local gaseous environment or medium

   an inert atmosphere

7. Abbreviation: at.   atm.  a unit of pressure; the pressure that will support a column of mercury 760 mm high at 0°C at sea level. 1 atmosphere is equivalent to 101 325 newtons per square metre or 14.72 pounds per square inch

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atmosphere Scientific  

/ ăt′mə-sfîr′ /

1. The mixture of gases surrounding the Earth or other celestial body, held in place by gravity. It forms distinct layers at different heights. The Earth's atmosphere consists, in ascending order, of the troposphere (containing 90% of the atmosphere's mass), the stratosphere, the mesosphere, the thermosphere, and the exosphere. The atmosphere is composed primarily of nitrogen (78%) and oxygen (21%) and plays a major role in the water cycle, the nitrogen cycle, and the carbon cycle.

2. See more at exosphere mesosphere stratosphere thermosphere troposphere

3. A unit of pressure equal to the pressure of the air at sea level, about 14.7 pounds per square inch, or 1,013 millibars.

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atmosphere Cultural  

1. The blanket of gas on the surface of a planet or satellite.

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Discover More

The atmosphere of the Earth is roughly eighty percent nitrogen and twenty percent oxygen, with traces of other gases. (See ionosphere, stratosphere, and troposphere.)

Other Word Forms

• atmosphereless
  adjective
• atmospheric
  adjective
• atmospherically
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of atmosphere

From the New Latin word atmosphaera, dating back to 1630–40. See atmo-, -sphere

Explanation

An atmosphere is a surrounding environment or influence. If you and your coworkers talk behind each other's backs, you will create a nasty atmosphere at work. Atmosphere was coined by 17th-century scientists combining the Greek words for vapor, atmos, and sphere, sphaira. The earth's atmosphere is the air and gas surrounding our planet. Atmosphere also describes the feeling of a place. A coffee shop might have a cool, artsy atmosphere. Some plants grow best in a damp atmosphere. In physics, atmosphere is a unit of pressure equal to the air pressure at sea level.

Example Sentences

Sinner's physical and mental freshness will be tested in the pressure-cooker atmosphere of a Grand Slam fortnight.

From BBC • May 17, 2026

According to the police, "there was a tense atmosphere and some quarrelling".

From Barron's • May 16, 2026

The percussive score by Joseph Shirley and Moses Sumney underlines this and gives the whole film an eerie, curious atmosphere, lending to a sense of unreality.

From Los Angeles Times • May 15, 2026

In 2024, humans put about 41.6 billion metric tons of CO2 equivalent in the atmosphere.

From Slate • May 15, 2026

According to Aristotle, comets exist in the upper atmosphere.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton

Related Words

• air
• ambience
• aura
• character
• climate
• color
• environment
• feel
• feeling
• flavor
• mood
• place
• quality
• scene
• sense
• space
• spirit
• surroundings
• taste
• tone