fluid

Definition

Any substance which can flow with relative ease, tends to assume the shape of its container, and obeys Bernoulli's principle; a liquid, gas or plasma.

Etymology

From Middle English fluid, from Latin fluidus (“flowing; fluid”), from Latin fluō (“to flow”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰleh₁- (“to swell; surge; overflow; run”). Akin to Ancient Greek φλύειν (phlúein, “to swell; overflow”). Not related to English flow, which is a native, inherited word from *plew-, but is distantly related from English bleat.

Example Sentences

• "An extreme version of vorticity is a vortex. The vortex is a spinning, cyclonic mass of fluid, which can be observed in the rotation of water going down a drain, as well as in smoke rings, tornados and hurricanes."
• "fluid inclusion Petrology, a tiny fluid- or gas-filled cavity in an igneous rock. 1-100 micrometers in diameter, formed by the entrapment of a fluid, typically that from which the rock crystallized."
• "The Doctor: Get a good night's sleep and drink plenty of fluids. / Kes: Fluids? / The Doctor: Everybody should drink plenty of fluids."