Printer Friendly
Dictionary, Encyclopedia and Thesaurus - The Free Dictionary
1,760,347,187 visitors served.
forum mailing list For webmasters
?
New: Language forums
Dictionary/
thesaurus
Medical
dictionary
Legal
dictionary
Financial
dictionary
Acronyms
 
Idioms
Encyclopedia
Wikipedia
encyclopedia
?

centripetal
(redirected from centripetally)

   Also found in: Medical, Encyclopedia 0.01 sec.
cen·trip·e·tal  (sn-trp-tl)
adj.
1. Moving or directed toward a center or axis.
2. Operated by means of centripetal force.
3. Physiology Transmitting nerve impulses toward the central nervous system; afferent.
4. Botany Developing or progressing inward toward the center or axis, as in the head of a sunflower, in which the oldest flowers are near the edge and the youngest flowers are in the center.
5. Tending or directed toward centralization: the centripetal effects of a homogeneous population.

cen·tripe·tal·ly adv.

centripetal [sɛnˈtrɪpɪtəl ˈsɛntrɪˌpiːtəl]
adj
1. (Physics / General Physics) acting, moving, or tending to move towards a centre Compare centrifugal
2. (Physics / General Physics) of, concerned with, or operated by centripetal force
3. (Life Sciences & Allied Applications / Botany) Botany (esp of certain inflorescences) developing from the outside towards the centre
4. (Life Sciences & Allied Applications / Physiology) Physiol another word for afferent
[from New Latin centripetus seeking the centre; see centri-, -petal]
centripetally  adv

centripetal  (sn-trp-tl)
1. Moving or directed toward a center or axis, particularly one around which an object is spinning.
2. Transmitting nerve impulses toward the brain or spinal cord; afferent.
3. Developing or progressing inward toward a center or axis, as in the growth of plant structures. For example, in the disk of the inflorescence of a sunflower, the florets near the edge open first, and the ones in the center last. Compare centrifugal.
ThesaurusLegend:  Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
Adj.1.centripetal - tending to move toward a center; "centripetal force"
centrifugal - tending to move away from a center; "centrifugal force"
2.centripetal - tending to unify
centralising, centralizing - tending to draw to a central point
3.centripetal - of a nerve fiber or impulse originating outside and passing toward the central nervous system; "sensory neurons"
afferent - of nerves and nerve impulses; conveying sensory information from the sense organs to the CNS; "afferent nerves"; "afferent impulses"
Translations
centripetal [senˈtrɪpɪtl] ADJcentrípeto
centripetal
adjzentripetal; centripetal forceZentripetalkraft f
centripetal [sɛnˈtrɪpɪtl] adj (Phys) → centripeto/a
centripetal [sɛnˈtrɪpɪtl] adj (Phys) → centripeto/a


How to thank TFD for its existence? Tell a friend about us, add a link to this page, add the site to iGoogle, or visit webmaster's page for free fun content.
?Page tools
Printer friendly
Cite / link
Email
Feedback
Add definition
? Mentioned in ? References in periodicals archive
 
[1] Geographic position as the starting point of literary interpretation is especially interesting during times of geographical change -- when borders shift across people, when people shift across borders, when borders move centripetally to create a large political formation out of smaller ones, when borders move centrifugally to create smaller formations out of a larger one.
Yet it is typically those societies on the fringes of the centripetally nationalistic West - those of the Caribbean, pre-Soviet Russia, Africa, Latin America - which offer up the truly centrifugal, multilingual novel.
But wa are thereby drawn centripetally toward the world of others, a world that existed before us and independently of our knowledge and consent.
 
Dictionary/thesaurus browser? ? Full browser
 
 
Dictionary, Thesaurus, and Translations
?

Disclaimer | Privacy policy | Feedback | Copyright © 2009 Farlex, Inc.
All content on this website, including dictionary, thesaurus, literature, geography, and other reference data is for informational purposes only. This information should not be considered complete, up to date, and is not intended to be used in place of a visit, consultation, or advice of a legal, medical, or any other professional. Terms of Use.