weak force


nounPhysics.
  1. a force between elementary particles that causes certain processes that take place with low probability, as radioactive beta-decay and collisions between neutrinos and other particles.

Origin of weak force

1
First recorded in1965–70
  • Also called weak interaction force .

Words Nearby weak force

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use weak force in a sentence

Scientific definitions for weak force

weak force

[ wēk ]


  1. The fundamental force that acts between leptons and is involved in the decay of hadrons. The weak nuclear force is responsible for nuclear beta decay (by changing the flavor of quarks) and for neutrino absorption and emission. It is mediated by the intermediate vector bosons (the W boson and the Z boson), and is weaker than the strong nuclear force and the electromagnetic force but stronger than gravity. Some scientists believe that the weak nuclear force and the electromagnetic force are both aspects of a single force called the electroweak force. Also called weak nuclear force weak interaction Compare electromagnetic force.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Cultural definitions for weak force

weak force

One of the four fundamental forces of nature. It is involved primarily in the phenomenon of radioactivity. (See standard model and strong force.)

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.