phi

Definition

Φ, the 21st letter of the Euclidean and modern Greek alphabet, usually romanized as "ph".

Etymology

From Late Latin phi, from Ancient Greek φεῖ (pheî).

Example Sentences

• "[…] tolerance (Frenkel-Brunswik 1949) for it showed that those persons with the strongest defences against internal conflict, i.e. obsessionals and conversion hysterics, were those least able to perceive the reality-conflicting phenomenon of phi."
• "The illusion of movement in a highway construction sign is an instance of the phi phenomenon, which is also at work in motion pictures and television."
• "Is it the phi phenomenon or the persistence of vision? Originally, the illusion of motion that movies excel at was thought to be the effect of the persistence of vision."