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• Kelvin
  Kelvin

  noun

  William Thomson, 1st Baron, 1824–1907, English physicist and mathematician.
• kelvin
  kelvin

  noun

  the basic SI unit of thermodynamic temperature; the fraction 1/ 273.16 of the thermodynamic temperature of the triple point of water

Kelvin

American  

[kel-vin] / ˈkɛl vɪn /

noun

1. William Thomson, 1st Baron, 1824–1907, English physicist and mathematician.

2. (lowercase) the basic unit of temperature in the International System of Units (SI), formally defined to be approximately 1/273 of the triple point of water. K

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adjective

1. Thermodynamics. noting or pertaining to an absolute scale of temperature Kelvin scale in which the degree intervals are equal to those of the Celsius scale and in which absolute zero is 0 degrees Kelvin and the triple point of water has the value of approximately 273 degrees Kelvin.

2. Also Kelwin a male given name.

Kelvin ¹ British  

/ ˈkɛlvɪn /

noun

1. William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin. 1824–1907, British physicist, noted for his work in thermodynamics, inventing the Kelvin scale, and in electricity, pioneering undersea telegraphy

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kelvin ² British  

/ ˈkɛlvɪn /

noun

1. K. the basic SI unit of thermodynamic temperature; the fraction 1/ 273.16 of the thermodynamic temperature of the triple point of water

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kelvin ¹ Scientific  

/ kĕl′vĭn /

1. The SI unit used to measure temperature, the basic unit of the Kelvin scale. A difference of one degree Kelvin corresponds to the same temperature difference as a difference of one degree Celsius.

2. See Table at measurement See also absolute zero

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Kelvin ² Scientific  

1. British mathematician and physicist known especially for his work on heat and electricity. In 1848 he proposed a scale of temperature independent of any physical substance, which became known as the Kelvin scale.

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Explanation

A kelvin is a unit for measuring temperature. The kelvin scale is based on absolute zero, the coldest possible measurement, so there is no such thing as a negative temperature in kelvins. The Celsius scale is based on kelvins, but the two scales differ in that kelvins measure an absolute temperature, based on a zero that can literally not get any colder. While temperature isn't commonly measured in kelvins outside the science lab, it's a vital way of calculating temperature for scientists. The kelvin is named after the Irish-Scottish physicist Sir William Thompson, also known as Lord Kelvin.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Kelvin kelvin

This Kelvin wave could keep sea levels elevated for months before its effects fade.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 11, 2026

The leading edge of the current Kelvin wave has already passed L.A. as well as San Francisco.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 11, 2026

More inundation is possible as the Kelvin waves pass through.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 8, 2026

Fueled by El Niño, a “coastally trapped” Kelvin wave has been moving up the coast of the Americas for weeks, bringing with it hotter water and elevated sea levels.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 8, 2026

Instead I felt sorry for him with Crazy Kelvin poking at him.

From "One Crazy Summer" by Rita Williams-Garcia

They reported a heat-to-electricity conversion efficiency exceeding 10% at a temperature difference of 475 kelvin, or about 855 degrees Fahrenheit.

From Science Daily ● May 16, 2024

More intriguingly, they determined that some of the PAHs had nuclei which could only have been formed in temperatures under 100 kelvin, which is extremely cold.

From Salon ● Dec. 22, 2023

Mr Scheidt notes that for warm-toned LEDs, the efficiency drops somewhat, but it's still possible to achieve around 160 lumens per watt for warm white luminaires, with a colour temperature of 2,700 kelvin.

From BBC ● Dec. 18, 2023

That star had a surface temperature of roughly 200,000 kelvin, with a stellar wind travelling outward at 16,000 kilometres per second — roughly 5% of the speed of light.

From Scientific American ● Feb. 1, 2023

When it decides there's too much oxygen, it starts collecting air in a tank and cooling it to 90 kelvin.

From "The Martian" by Andy Weir

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