laminar flow

American  

noun

Hydraulics, Mechanics.

1. the flow of a viscous fluid in which particles of the fluid move in parallel layers, each of which has a constant velocity but is in motion relative to its neighboring layers.

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laminar flow British  

noun

1. nonturbulent motion of a fluid in which parallel layers have different velocities relative to each other Compare turbulent flow See also streamline flow

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laminar flow Scientific  

/ lăm′ə-nər /

1. Smooth, orderly movement of a fluid, in which there is no turbulence, and any given subcurrent moves more or less in parallel with any other nearby subcurrent. Laminar flow is common in viscous fluids, especially those moving at low velocities.

2. Compare turbulent flow

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Etymology

Origin of laminar flow

First recorded in 1945–50

Compare meaning

How does laminar-flow compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• laminar flow vs. turbulent flow

Example Sentences

A backlight sufficient to be useful would disturb the laminar flow of air rushing across the rear decklid, increasing shearing turbulence and drag at the back of the car.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 25, 2026

"The original Murray's Law was formulated by minimising the energy consumption to maintain the laminar flow in blood vessels, but it was unsuited for synthetic materials," says Binghan Zhou.

From Science Daily • May 7, 2024

Chemical industries often use catalytic reactions, involving laminar flow of reactants through catalysts.

From Science Daily • May 7, 2024

It turns out that a soccer ball’s drag coefficient is approximately 2.5 times larger for laminar flow than for turbulent flow.

From Scientific American • Nov. 19, 2022

One of the NACAs great contributions to aerodynamics was a series of laminar flow airfoils, wing shapes designed to maximize the flow of smooth air around the wing.

From "Hidden Figures" by Margot Lee Shetterly