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moment of inertia

American  

noun

Physics.
  1. the sum of the products of the mass and the square of the perpendicular distance to the axis of rotation of each particle in a body rotating about an axis.


moment of inertia British  

noun

  1.  I.  the tendency of a body to resist angular acceleration, expressed as the sum of the products of the mass of each particle in the body and the square of its perpendicular distance from the axis of rotation

"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

moment of inertia Scientific  
/ mōmənt /
  1. A measure of a body's resistance to angular acceleration, equal to the product of the mass of the body and the square of its distance from the axis of rotation.

  2. See also angular momentum torque


Etymology

Origin of moment of inertia

First recorded in 1820–30

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.

To do this, felines exploit the physical laws of classical mechanics: by placing their front paws close to their body, they reduce their moment of inertia.

From Scientific American

Exactly, the actual physics behind that is: you’re reducing your moment of inertia, which increases your rotational velocity.

From Scientific American

That boosts the moment of inertia and helps mitigate the effect of a poor shot.

From Golf Digest

They also feature high-density tungsten powder in the sole to increase moment of inertia for more stability on off-center hits.

From Golf Digest

One, the Spider S, is the more commonly seen idea of increasing moment of inertia, which is a measurement of stability on off-center hits.

From Golf Digest