shear stress

American  

[sheer stres] / ˈʃɪər ˌstrɛs /

Also shearing stress

noun

Physics.

1. the external force acting on an object or surface parallel to the slope or plane in which it lies; the stress tending to produce shear.

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shear stress British  

noun

1. the form of stress in a body, part, etc, that tends to produce cutting rather than stretching or bending

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shear stress Scientific  

1. A form of stress that subjects an object to which force is applied to skew, tending to cause shear strain. For example, shear stress on a block of wood would arise by fixing one end and applying force to this other; this would tend to change the block's shape from a rectangle to a parallelogram.

2. See also strain

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Etymology

Origin of shear stress

First recorded in 1870–75

Example Sentences

Shear stress involves transverse forces; the strain shows up as opposing blocks or regions of the material moving past each other.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2017