displacement

American  

[dis-pleys-muhnt] / dɪsˈpleɪs mənt /

noun

1. the act of displacing.

2. the state of being displaced or the amount or degree to which something is displaced.

3. Psychology, Psychoanalysis. the transfer of an emotion from its original focus to another object, person, or situation.

4. Physics.

   1. the displacing in space of one mass by another.

   2. the weight or the volume of fluid displaced by a floating or submerged body.

   3. the linear or angular distance in a given direction between a body or point and a reference position.

   4. the distance of an oscillating body from its central position or point of equilibrium at any given moment.

5. Machinery, Automotive.

   1. the volume of the space through which a piston travels during a single stroke in an engine, pump, or the like.

   2. the total volume of the space traversed by all the pistons.

6. Nautical. the amount of water that a vessel displaces, expressed in displacement tons.

7. Geology. the offset of rocks caused by movement along a fault.

8. electric displacement.

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displacement British  

/ dɪsˈpleɪsmənt /

noun

1. the act of displacing or the condition of being displaced

2. the weight or volume displaced by a floating or submerged body in a fluid

3. chem another name for substitution

4. the volume displaced by the piston of a reciprocating pump or engine

5. psychoanal the transferring of emotional feelings from their original object to one that disguises their real nature

6. geology the distance any point on one side of a fault plane has moved in relation to a corresponding point on the opposite side

7. astronomy an apparent change in position of a body, such as a star

8.  s.  maths the distance measured in a particular direction from a reference point

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displacement Scientific  

/ dĭs-plās′mənt /

1. Chemistry A chemical reaction in which an atom, radical, or molecule replaces another in a compound.

2. Physics A vector, or the magnitude of a vector, that points from an initial position (of a body or reference frame) to a subsequent position.

3. The weight or volume of a fluid displaced by a floating body, used especially as a measurement of the weight or bulk of ships.

4. The volume displaced by a single stroke of a piston in an engine or pump.

5. Geology

   1. The relative movement between the two sides of a geologic fault.

   2. The distance between the two sides of a fault.

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Other Word Forms

• predisplacement noun

Etymology

Origin of displacement

First recorded in 1605–15; displace + -ment

Example Sentences

One important method involves DNA strand displacement, a biochemical process that enables precise programming of movement using specific DNA sequences labeled as "fuel" and "structure."

From Science Daily

"Given the intensity of the coercive displacement that we are seeing, how should we prepare, collectively as the international community, for a new addition to the list of occupied territories?"

From BBC

"Even in displacement, people no longer feel safe," she said.

From Barron's

And a modest displacement tomorrow is different from widespread replacement today.

From The Wall Street Journal

A survey last year of 3,020 Americans 16 and older by workforce nonprofit Jobs for the Future showed widespread worry about AI-related job displacement.

From The Wall Street Journal