quantum

== English == === Etymology === From Late Latin quantum, noun use of neuter form of Latin quantus (“how much”). === Pronunciation === (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ˈkwɒntəm/ enPR: /kwŏn′təm/ (General American) IPA(key): /ˈkwɑntəm/ (US, Canada) IPA(key): (enunciated) [ˈkʰwɑ̃ntʰə̃m], (common flapped realization) [ˈkʰwɑ̃ɾ̃ə̃m] (enunciated) (flapped) Note: in General American, the enunciated form is more common when the word is used on its own; but in connected speech, when it is used as a modifier (as in quantum mechanics), the flapped form is more common. === Noun === quantum (countable and uncountable, plural quantums or quanta) (now chiefly South Asia or law) The total amount of something; quantity. [from 17th c.] (law) The amount of compensation awarded to a successful party in a lawsuit. (law) The length or magnitude of the sentence handed down to someone who has been found guilty of a crime. The amount or quantity observably present, or available. [from 18th c.] (physics) The smallest possible, and therefore indivisible, unit of a given quantity or quantifiable phenomenon. [from 20th c.] (computing) The amount of time allocated for a thread to perform its work in a multithreaded environment. (computing, uncountable) Ellipsis of quantum computing. (medicine) The minimum dose of a pathogen required to cause an infection. (economics) Amount of goods produced or demanded. (mathematics) A definite portion of a manifoldness, limited by a mark or by a boundary. ==== Derived terms ==== ==== Translations ==== === Adjective === quantum (not comparable) Of a change, sudden or discrete, without intermediate stages. (informal) Of a change, significant. (physics) Involving quanta, quantum mechanics or other aspects of quantum physics. (computing theory) Relating to a quantum computer. Antonym: classical ==== Derived terms ==== ==== Descendants ==== → French: quantum → Portuguese: quantum ==== Translations ==== ==== Further reading ==== quantum on Wikipedia.Wikipedia == Basque == === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /kwantum/ [kwãn̪.t̪ũm] Rhymes: -antum, -um === Noun === quantum inan alternative form of kuantu (“quantum”) ==== Declension ==== === Further reading === “quantum”, in Euskaltzaindiaren Hiztegia [Dictionary of the Basque Academy] (in Basque), Euskaltzaindia [Royal Academy of the Basque Language] == French == === Etymology === From Latin quantum. === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /kɑ̃.tɔm/, /kwɑ̃.tɔm/ === Noun === quantum m (plural quanta) (physics) quantum === Further reading === “quantum”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012 == Italian == === Etymology === Unadapted borrowing from German Quantum, from Latin quantum. Doublet of quanto, which was also re-borrowed with the same meaning as quantum. First attested before 1930. === Noun === quantum m (plural quanta) quantum Synonym: quanto == Latin == === Pronunciation === (Classical Latin) IPA(key): [ˈkʷan.tũː] (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA(key): [ˈkʷan.tum] === Adjective === quantum inflection of quantus: nominative/accusative/vocative neuter singular accusative masculine singular === Determiner === quantum (with genitive) (when coupled with tantum) as much […] as da mihi tantum aquae quantum vini ― give me as much water as wine how high, how dear, as dear as ==== Derived terms ==== quantum libet quantum meruit quantum satis quantum valebant ==== Descendants ==== → Dutch: kvante (learned) → English: quantum (learned)→ French: quantum→ Portuguese: quantum French: quant → German: Quantum (learned) Italian: quanto Spanish: cuanto Portuguese: quanto === References === “quantum”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press “quantum”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891), An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers "quantum", in Charles du Fresne du Cange, Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887) “quantum”, in Gaffiot, Félix (1934), Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette. Carl Meißner; Henry William Auden (1894), Latin Phrase-Book‎[2], London: Macmillan and Co. Dizionario Latino, Olivetti == Portuguese == === Alternative forms === quântum (rare) === Etymology === Unadapted borrowing from Latin quantum. Doublet of quanto. === Pronunciation === === Noun === quantum m (plural quanta or (uncommon) quantuns) (physics) quantum (indivisible unit of a given quantity) ==== Related terms ==== quanto quântico === Further reading === “quantum”, in Dicionário Aulete Digital (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2026 “quantum”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2026 == Spanish == === Etymology === Unadapted borrowing from Latin quantum. === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /ˈkwantum/ [ˈkwãn̪.t̪ũm] Rhymes: -antum Syllabification: quan‧tum === Noun === quantum m (plural quanta) alternative form of cuanto (“quantum”) ==== Usage notes ==== According to Royal Spanish Academy (RAE) prescriptions, unadapted foreign words should be written in italics in a text printed in roman type, and vice versa, and in quotation marks in a manuscript text or when italics are not available. In practice, this RAE prescription is not always followed. === Further reading === Seco, Manuel; Andrés, Olimpia; Ramos, Gabino (2023), “quantum”, in Diccionario del español actual [Dictionary of Current Spanish] (in Spanish), third digital edition, Fundación BBVA