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atmosphere

An atmosphere is a surrounding environment or influence. If you and your coworkers talk behind each other's backs, you will create a nasty atmosphere at work.

Atmosphere was invented by seventeenth century Scientists from Greek words for vapor, atmos, and sphere sphaira. The earth's atmosphere is the air and gas surrounding our planet. Atmosphere also describes the feeling of a place. A coffee shop might have a cool, artsy atmosphere. Some plants grow best in a damp atmosphere. Police presence creates a paranoid atmosphere among protesters. In physics, atmosphere is a unit of pressure equal to the air pressure at sea level.

DEFINITIONS OF: atmosphere

1

n the envelope of gases surrounding any celestial body

Types:
sky
the atmosphere and outer space as viewed from the earth
blue, blue air, blue sky, wild blue yonder
the sky as viewed during daylight
mackerel sky
a sky filled with rows of cirrocumulus or small altocumulus clouds
Type of:
gas
a fluid in the gaseous state having neither independent shape nor volume and being able to expand indefinitely

n the mass of air surrounding the Earth

“there was great heat as the comet entered the atmosphere”
Synonyms:
air
Types:
airspace
the atmosphere above a nation that is deemed to be under its jurisdiction
Type of:
part, region
the extended spatial location of something

n the weather or climate at some place

“the atmosphere was thick with fog”
Synonyms:
atmospheric state
Types:
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air mass
a large body of air with uniform characteristics horizontally
anticyclone
(meteorology) winds spiraling outward from a high pressure center; circling clockwise in the northern hemisphere and counterclockwise in the southern
cyclone
(meteorology) rapid inward circulation of air masses about a low pressure center; circling counterclockwise in the northern hemisphere and clockwise in the southern
fog, fogginess, murk, murkiness
an atmosphere in which visibility is reduced because of a cloud of some substance
high
an air mass of higher than normal pressure
depression, low
an air mass of lower pressure; often brings precipitation
fug
(British informal) an airless smoky smelly atmosphere
Type of:
atmospheric condition, conditions, weather, weather condition
the atmospheric conditions that comprise the state of the atmosphere in terms of temperature and wind and clouds and precipitation

n a unit of pressure: the pressure that will support a column of mercury 760 mm high at sea level and 0 degrees centigrade

Synonyms:
atm, standard atmosphere, standard pressure
Types:
STP, s.t.p.
standard temperature and pressure
Type of:
pressure unit
a unit measuring force per unit area

n a distinctive but intangible quality surrounding a person or thing

“an atmosphere of defeat pervaded the candidate's headquarters”
Synonyms:
air, aura
Types:
mystique
an aura of heightened value or interest or meaning surrounding a person or thing
note
a characteristic emotional quality
vibe, vibration
a distinctive emotional aura experienced instinctively
Type of:
quality
an essential and distinguishing attribute of something or someone

n a particular environment or surrounding influence

“there was an atmosphere of excitement”
Synonyms:
ambiance, ambience
Types:
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genius loci
the special atmosphere of a place
gloom, gloominess, glumness
an atmosphere of depression and melancholy
miasm, miasma
an unwholesome atmosphere
feel, feeling, flavor, flavour, look, smell, spirit, tone
the general atmosphere of a place or situation and the effect that it has on people
cloud
a cause of worry or gloom or trouble
bareness, bleakness, desolation, nakedness
a bleak and desolate atmosphere
Hollywood
a flashy vulgar tone or atmosphere believed to be characteristic of the American film industry
Zeitgeist
the spirit of the time; the spirit characteristic of an age or generation
Type of:
condition, status
a state at a particular time
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