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erg

1 American  
[urg] / ɜrg /

noun

Physics.

  1. the centimeter-gram-second unit of work or energy, equal to the work done by a force of one dyne when its point of application moves through a distance of one centimeter in the direction of the force; 10− 7 joule.

erg 2 American  
[erg] / ɛrg /

noun

Geology.

  1. a vast area covered with sand and shifting dunes, as parts of the Sahara Desert.

ERG 3 American  

abbreviation

  1. electroretinogram.

erg 1 British  
/ ɜːɡ /

noun

  1. the cgs unit of work or energy. 1 erg is equivalent to 10 –7 joule

"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
erg 2 British  
/ ɜːɡ /

noun

  1. an area of shifting sand dunes in a desert, esp the Sahara

"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
erg 3 British  
/ ɜːɡ /

noun

  1. informal short for ergometer

"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
erg 1 Scientific  
/ ûrg /

  1. The unit of energy or work in the centimeter-gram-second system, equal to the force of one dyne over a distance of one centimeter. This unit has been mostly replaced by the joule.

erg 2 Scientific  
/ ûrg /

  1. An extensive area of desert covered with shifting sand dunes.

Etymology

Origin of erg1

1870–75; < Greek érgon work

Origin of erg2

1870–75; < French < Arabic ʾirq

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Eventually, she was relegated to practicing in a storage closet in the Whitman gym, where she and other injured rowers used erg machines and stationary bikes.

From Washington Post • Feb. 11, 2022

Schendekehl is proof you don’t have to be real big to excel on the erg.

From Seattle Times • May 27, 2019

“They also look at water results, but they also want to know what about your erg tests.”

From Seattle Times • May 27, 2019

Further Chandra observations, performed between 1 and 2 September 2017, confirmed the presence of continued X-ray activity, and hinted at a slight increase in luminosity to LX,iso ≈ 1.1 × 1039 erg s−1.

From Nature • Oct. 15, 2017

While straining in this way, focusing every erg of energy on his eyes, his bowels suddenly opened up, and before he could realize what he knew, liquid stools were running down his legs.

From "The Bluest Eye" by Toni Morrison

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.