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constant

Think of something or someone that does not change as constant. A classmate's constant drumming on the table with his fingers could be a constant source of annoyance.

Constant derives from Latin verb meaning "to stand with," so something constant is continually standing with you and not wavering. You may be thankful for the constant companionship of your dog but not necessarily for your teacher's constant homework assignments. In math and science, a constant is a number that is fixed and known, unlike a variable which changes with the context. That idea crosses over to real life. If a friend is a constant in your life, that means they have always been with you and there for you.

DEFINITIONS OF: constant

1

adj uninterrupted in time and indefinitely long continuing

“in constant pain”
Synonyms:
ceaseless, incessant, never-ending, perpetual, unceasing, unremitting
continuous, uninterrupted
continuing in time or space without interruption

adj unvarying in nature

“maintained a constant temperature”
Synonyms:
changeless, invariant, unvarying
invariable
not liable to or capable of change

adj steadfast in purpose or devotion or affection

“a man constant in adherence to his ideals”
“a constant lover”
“constant as the northern star”
Synonyms
unchangeable
not changeable or subject to change
staunch, steadfast, unswerving
firm and dependable especially in loyalty
unfailing, unflagging
unceasing
faithful
steadfast in affection or allegiance
stable
resistant to change of position or condition
invariable
not liable to or capable of change
Antonyms:
inconstant
likely to change frequently often without apparent or cogent reason; variable
changeable, changeful
such that alteration is possible; having a marked tendency to change
false, untrue
(used especially of persons) not dependable in devotion or affection; unfaithful
fickle, volatile
marked by erratic changeableness in affections or attachments
unfaithful
not true to duty or obligation or promises
unstable
lacking stability or fixity or firmness
variable
liable to or capable of change
volatile
evaporating readily at normal temperatures and pressures
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n a quantity that does not vary

Synonyms:
constant quantity, invariable
Types:
parameter, parametric quantity
a constant in the equation of a curve that can be varied to yield a family of similar curves
degree of freedom
one of the minimum number of parameters needed to describe the state of a physical system
Type of:
quantity
the concept that something has a magnitude and can be represented in mathematical expressions by a constant or a variable

n a number representing a quantity assumed to have a fixed value in a specified mathematical context

“the velocity of light is a constant”
Types:
show 24 types...
hide 24 types...
Avogadro number, Avogadro's number
the number of molecules in a mole of a substance (approximately 602,250,000,000,000,000,000,000)
Boltzmann's constant
constant used in the calculation of the ideal gas constant
coefficient
a constant number that serves as a measure of some property or characteristic
cosmological constant
an arbitrary constant in the equations of general relativity theory
equilibrium constant
(chemistry) the ratio of concentrations when equilibrium is reached in a reversible reaction (when the rate of the forward reaction equals the rate of the reverse reaction)
R, gas constant, universal gas constant
(physics) the universal constant in the gas equation: pressure times volume = R times temperature; equal to 8.3143 joules per kelvin per mole
G, constant of gravitation, gravitational constant, universal gravitational constant
(physics) the universal constant relating force to mass and distance in Newton's law of gravitation
Hubble constant, Hubble parameter, Hubble's constant, Hubble's parameter
(cosmology) the ratio of the speed of recession of a galaxy (due to the expansion of the universe) to its distance from the observer; the Hubble constant is not actually a constant, but is regarded as measuring the expansion rate today
ionic charge
the charge on an ion is equal to a constant charge e multiplied by an integer from 1 to 15
constant of proportionality, factor of proportionality
the constant value of the ratio of two proportional quantities x and y; usually written y = kx, where k is the factor of proportionality
c, light speed, speed of light
the speed at which light travels in a vacuum; the constancy and universality of the speed of light is recognized by defining it to be exactly 299,792,458 meters per second
absorptance, absorption coefficient, coefficient of absorption
a measure of the rate of decrease in the intensity of electromagnetic radiation (as light) as it passes through a given substance; the fraction of incident radiant energy absorbed per unit mass or thickness of an absorber
coefficient of drag, drag coefficient
the ratio of the drag on a body moving through air to the product of the velocity and the surface area of the body
coefficient of friction
the ratio of the weight of an object being moved along a surface and the force that maintains contact between the object and the surface
coefficient of mutual induction, mutual inductance
a measure of the induction between two circuits; the ratio of the electromotive force in a circuit to the corresponding change of current in a neighboring circuit; usually measured in henries
coefficient of self induction, self-inductance
the ratio of the electromotive force produced in a circuit by self-induction to the rate of change of current producing it, expressed in henries
modulus
(physics) a coefficient that expresses how much of a specified property is possessed by a specified substance
coefficient of expansion, expansivity
the fractional change in length or area or volume per unit change in temperature at a given constant pressure
coefficient of reflection, reflectance, reflection factor, reflectivity
the fraction of radiant energy that is reflected from a surface
transmission, transmittance
the fraction of radiant energy that passes through a substance
absolute viscosity, coefficient of viscosity, dynamic viscosity
a measure of the resistance to flow of a fluid under an applied force
weight, weighting
(statistics) a coefficient assigned to elements of a frequency distribution in order to represent their relative importance
dissociation constant
the equilibrium constant for a reversible dissociation
Planck's constant, h
the constant of proportionality relating the energy of a photon to its frequency; approximately 6.626 x 10^-34 joule-second
Type of:
number
a concept of quantity involving zero and units
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