gluon

[ gloo-on ]

/ ˈglu ɒn /

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noun Physics.

an unobserved massless particle with spin 1 that is believed to transmit the strong force between quarks, binding them together into baryons and mesons.

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Origin of gluon

First recorded in 1970–75; glue + -on¹

Words nearby gluon

gluhwein, glum, glumaceous, glum bum, glume, gluon, gluonium, glurge, gluside, glut, glutamate

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use gluon in a sentence

The procedure doesn’t make much physical sense, as gravitons are not literally pairs of gluons.
How Gravity Is a Double Copy of Other Forces|Charlie Wood|May 4, 2021|Quanta Magazine
No one had seen gluons yet, or checked any of the important predictions.
The Charmed Life of Frank Wilczek - Issue 98: Mind|Nell Freudenberger|March 17, 2021|Nautilus
An artistic rendering of the quarks and gluons that make up a proton.
A Breakthrough in Measuring the Building Blocks of Nature - Facts So Romantic|Subodh Patil|January 8, 2021|Nautilus
We associate gravity with the fabric of space-time itself, while gluons move around in space-time.
What Is a Particle?|Natalie Wolchover|November 12, 2020|Quanta Magazine

That includes not just their size, but also their mass and the nature of their components — how, for example, the quarks and gluons that make them up are sprinkled around inside.
This year’s SN 10 scientists aim to solve some of science’s biggest challenges|Science News Staff|September 30, 2020|Science News

British Dictionary definitions for gluon

gluon

/ (ˈɡluːɒn) /

noun

a hypothetical particle believed to be exchanged between quarks in order to bind them together to form particles

Word Origin for gluon

C20: from glue + -on

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

Scientific definitions for gluon

gluon

[ glōō′ŏn ]

The subatomic particle that mediates the strong force. The exchange of gluons between two quarks changes the color of the quarks and results in the attractive force holding them together in hadrons. Gluons are bosons. See Table at subatomic particle.