torsion
Other forms: torsions
A force that twists something is called torsion. The shape of the twisted object can also be called torsion, like the torsion of a tree's branches that makes it tricky to build a treehouse.
In physics, you can calculate torsion using a formula. The turning or twisting force that causes torsion is called torque. Both words share a Latin root, torquere, "to twist or distort." Torsion first meant "wringing pain in the bowels," from the idea that abdominal pain was caused by twisted insides. Medically, torsion is still used today for conditions caused by twisting, like a torsion fracture, when a bone breaks while twisting.
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a twisting force
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synonyms:
torque
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types:
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magnetic moment, moment of a magnet
the torque exerted on a magnet or dipole when it is placed in a magnetic field
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type of:
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force
(physics) the influence that produces a change in a physical quantity
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magnetic moment, moment of a magnet
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a tortuous and twisted shape or position
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synonyms:
contortion, crookedness, tortuosity, tortuousness
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type of:
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distorted shape, distortion
a shape resulting from distortion
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distorted shape, distortion
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