compressibility
Americannoun
-
the quality or state of being compressible.
-
Physics. the reciprocal of the bulk modulus, equal to the ratio of the fractional change in volume to the stress applied to a body.
noun
-
the ability to be compressed
-
k. physics the reciprocal of the bulk modulus; the ratio of volume strain to stress at constant temperature
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of compressibility
First recorded in 1685–95; compressible ( def. ) + -ity
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.
See Examples For:
Properties such as density, heat capacity, viscosity, and compressibility respond to temperature and pressure in ways that are opposite to what scientists see in typical substances.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 29, 2026
"Our goal was to create a metafluid that not only possesses these remarkable attributes but also provides a platform for programmable viscosity, compressibility and optical properties."
From Science Daily ● Apr. 3, 2024
Water is unlike most other liquids on Earth: it has at least 66 weird properties, including high surface tension, high heat capacity, high melting and boiling points and low compressibility.
From Nature ● Apr. 7, 2020
At low pressures, the correction factor for intermolecular attractions is more significant, and the effect of the volume of the gas molecules on Z would be a small lowering compressibility.
From Textbooks ● Feb. 14, 2019
His first significant contribution to science concerned the springiness, or compressibility, of air, and involved the most famous experiment of his illustrious career.
From "The Scientists" by John Gribbin
The reason for these different compressibilities is that atoms and molecules are separated by large empty spaces in gases but packed close together in liquids and solids.
From Textbooks ● Aug. 12, 2015
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
