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static

[stat-ik]
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adjective Also stat·i·cal.
  1. pertaining to or characterized by a fixed or stationary condition.
  2. showing little or no change: a static concept; a static relationship.
  3. lacking movement, development, or vitality: The novel was marred by static characterizations, especially in its central figures.
  4. Sociology. referring to a condition of social life bound by tradition.
  5. Electricity. static electricity.
  6. noting or pertaining to atmospheric electricity interfering with radar, radio, the sending and receiving of wireless messages, etc.
  7. Physics. acting by mere weight without producing motion: static pressure.
  8. Economics. pertaining to fixed relations, or different combinations of fixed quantities: static population.
  9. Computers. (of data storage, processing, or programming) unaffected by the passage of time or the presence or absence of power: A static website contains Web pages with fixed content that does not change as the user interacts with it.
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noun
  1. Electricity.
    1. static or atmospheric electricity.
    2. interference due to such electricity.
  2. Informal. difficulty; trouble: Will your dad give you any static on using the car?
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Origin of static

1560–70; < New Latin staticus < Greek statikós, equivalent to sta- (stem of histánai to make stand) + -tikos -tic
Related formsstat·i·cal·ly, adverbnon·stat·ic, adjectiveun·stat·ic, adjectiveun·stat·i·cal, adjectiveun·stat·i·cal·ly, adverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

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British Dictionary definitions for statical

static

adjective Also: statical
  1. not active or moving; stationary
  2. (of a weight, force, or pressure) acting but causing no movement
  3. of or concerned with forces that do not produce movementCompare dynamic (def. 1)
  4. relating to or causing stationary electric charges; electrostatic
  5. of or relating to interference in the reception of radio or television transmissions
  6. of or concerned with statics
  7. sociol characteristic of or relating to a society that has reached a state of equilibrium so that no changes are taking place
  8. computing (of a memory) not needing its contents refreshed periodicallyCompare dynamic (def. 5)
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noun
  1. random hissing or crackling or a speckled picture caused by the interference of electrical disturbances in the reception of radio or television transmissions
  2. electric sparks or crackling produced by friction
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See also statics
Derived Formsstatically, adverb

Word Origin

C16: from New Latin staticus, from Greek statikos causing to stand, from histanai to stand, put on the scales
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

Word Origin and History for statical

static

adj.

1640s (earlier statical, 1560s), "pertaining to the science of weight and its mechanical effects," from Modern Latin statica, from Greek statikos "causing to stand, skilled in weighing," from stem of histanai "to make to stand, set; to place in the balance, weigh," from PIE root *sta- "stand" (see stet). The sense of "having to do with bodies at rest or with forces that balance each other" is first recorded 1802. Applied to frictional electricity from 1839.

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static

n.

"random radio noise," 1912, from static (adj.). Figurative sense of "aggravation, criticism" is attested from 1926.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
statical in Science

static

[stăt′ĭk]
Adjective
  1. Having no motion; being at rest. Compare dynamic.
  2. Relating to or producing static electricity.
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Noun
  1. Distortion or interruption of a broadcast signal, such as crackling or noise in a receiver or specks on a television screen, often produced when background electromagnetic radiation in the atmosphere disturbs signal reception or when there are loose connections in the transmission or reception circuits.
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The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.