field theory
Americannoun
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An explicit mathematical description of physical phenomena that models physical forces using fields.
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The study of fields and field extensions in algebra.
Etymology
Origin of field theory
First recorded in 1900–05
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.
In quantum field theory, the particles that make up our world such as electrons, top quarks, neutrinos, and even dark matter are not independent objects in the usual sense.
From Science Daily • Mar. 10, 2026
The name of their elephant is unified field theory.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 9, 2026
Tong ended up connecting the fluids on Earth to the quantum Hall effect again, but through a different approach, using the language of quantum field theory.
From Scientific American • Aug. 24, 2023
In the Caltech interview, he recalled a paper in which he suggested that gravity could solve some troubling infinities that were showing up in the quantum field theory of electrodynamics.
From New York Times • May 8, 2023
Both men were flying blind, neither having had the slightest training in electrical field theory.
From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik
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.
