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heat capacity

noun Thermodynamics.
  1. the heat required to raise the temperature of a substance one degree.
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Compare specific heat.

Origin of heat capacity

First recorded in 1900–05
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
British Dictionary definitions for heat capacity

heat capacity

noun
  1. the heat required to raise the temperature of a substance by unit temperature interval under specified conditions, usually measured in joules per kelvin. Symbol: C p (for constant pressure) or C v (for constant volume)
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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
heat capacity in Medicine

heat capacity

n.
  1. The amount of heat required to raise the temperature of one mole or one gram of a substance by one degree Celsius without change of phase.thermal capacity
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
heat capacity in Science

heat capacity

  1. The ratio of the heat energy absorbed by a substance to its increase in temperature. Heat capacity is also called thermal capacity.♦ The specific heat or specific heat capacity of a substance is the heat capacity per unit mass, usually measured in joules per kilogram per degree Kelvin. See also latent heat thermodynamics.
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The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
heat capacity in Culture

heat capacity

In physics, the capability of a substance to absorb energy in the form of heat for a given increase in temperature. Materials with high heat capacities, such as water, require greater amounts of heat to increase their temperatures than do substances with low heat capacities, such as metals. (See entropy.)

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The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.