quark

== English == === Etymology 1 === Sense 1 (“subatomic particle”) was coined by the American physicist Murray Gell-Mann (1929–2019) in 1963, apparently an arbitrary word. Subsequently, in a letter dated 27 June 1978 to the editor of the Oxford English Dictionary Supplement, Gell-Mann associated the word with the sentence “Three quarks for Muster Mark!” from James Joyce’s Finnegans Wake (1939) and indicated that he pronounced the word /kwɔɹk/, reasoning that the sentence referred to a call in a pub for “three quarts”. However, the context in the book indicates that quark is probably a variant of quawk (“harsh call of a bird”) and was intended by Joyce to be pronounced /kwɑːk/, the modern pronunciation. ==== Pronunciation ==== (Received Pronunciation) enPR: kwäk, IPA(key): /kwɑːk/ (General American) enPR: kwärk, IPA(key): /kwɑɹk/, (dated) enPR: kwôrk, IPA(key): /kwɔɹk/ Rhymes: -ɑː(ɹ)k, -ɔː(ɹ)k ==== Noun ==== quark (plural quarks) (particle physics) In the Standard Model, one of a number of elementary subatomic particles having fractional electric charge that forms matter. They are theorized not to exist in isolation, but only in combinations in hadrons such as neutrons and protons or in quark–gluon plasmas. Synonym: (obsolete) ace (by extension, computing, X Window System) An integer that uniquely identifies a text string. Coordinate term: atom (slang) A nonsense, trivial text string. (Can we add an example for this sense?) ===== Hyponyms ===== ===== Derived terms ===== ===== Translations ===== === Etymology 2 === Borrowed from German Quark (“cottage cheese; curds; curd cheese”). Doublet of tvorog and twaróg. ==== Pronunciation ==== (Received Pronunciation) enPR: kwäk, IPA(key): /kwɑːk/, (reproducing the German pronunciation) enPR: kväk, IPA(key): /kvɑːk/ (General American) enPR: kwärk, IPA(key): /kwɑɹk/ Rhymes: -ɑː(ɹ)k ==== Noun ==== quark (uncountable) A soft, creamy, unripened cheese made from cow's milk, originating from and eaten throughout central, northern, eastern, and southeastern Europe, as well as the Low Countries. Coordinate terms: tvorog, twaróg ===== Translations ===== === Etymology 3 === Onomatopoeic, from the sound of the squawk. ==== Pronunciation ==== (Received Pronunciation) enPR: kwäk, IPA(key): /kwɑːk/ (General American) enPR: kwärk, IPA(key): /kwɑɹk/ Rhymes: -ɑː(ɹ)k ==== Noun ==== quark (plural quarks) (Falkland Islands, informal) The black-crowned night heron (Nycticorax nycticorax). Synonym: (US) quawk ===== Translations ===== === References === === Further reading === quark on Wikipedia.Wikipedia quark (dairy product) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia quark (disambiguation) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia == Basque == === Etymology === Unadapted borrowing from English quark. === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /kwark/ [kwark] Rhymes: -ark Hyphenation: quark === Noun === quark inan (physics) quark ==== Declension ==== === Further reading === “quark”, in Euskaltzaindiaren Hiztegia [Dictionary of the Basque Academy] (in Basque), Euskaltzaindia [Royal Academy of the Basque Language] == Catalan == === Etymology === Unadapted borrowing from English quark. === Noun === quark m (plural quarks) (particle physics) quark == Dutch == === Etymology === Unadapted borrowing from English quark. === Pronunciation === Homophone: kwark === Noun === quark m (plural quarks, no diminutive) (particle physics) quark == French == === Etymology === Unadapted borrowing from English quark. === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /kwaʁk/ === Noun === quark m (plural quarks) (particle physics) quark == Galician == === Etymology === Unadapted borrowing from English quark. === Noun === quark m (plural quarks) (particle physics) quark == Italian == === Etymology === Unadapted borrowing from English quark. === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /ˈkwark/ Rhymes: -ark Hyphenation: quàrk === Noun === quark m (invariable) (particle physics) quark ==== Derived terms ==== quarkonio === Further reading === quark in Treccani.it – Vocabolario Treccani on line, Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana == Portuguese == === Pronunciation === === Etymology 1 === Unadapted borrowing from English quark. ==== Noun ==== quark m (plural quarks) (particle physics) quark (an elementary subatomic particle which forms matter) === Etymology 2 === Borrowed from German Quark. ==== Noun ==== quark m (plural quarks) quark (soft creamy cheese) === Further reading === “quark”, in Dicionário Aulete Digital (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2026 “quark”, in Dicio – Dicionário Online de Português (in Portuguese), São Paulo: 7Graus, 2009–2026 “quark”, in Dicionário da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisboa: Academia das Ciências de Lisboa, 2001–2026 “quark”, in Dicionário infopédia da Lingua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Porto: Porto Editora, 2003–2026 “quark”, in Michaelis Dicionário Brasileiro da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), São Paulo: Editora Melhoramentos, 2015–2026, →ISBN “quark”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2026 == Spanish == === Alternative forms === cuark, cuarc === Etymology === Unadapted borrowing from English quark. === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /ˈkwoɾk/ [ˈkwoɾk], /ˈkwaɾk/ [ˈkwaɾk] Rhymes: -oɾk, -aɾk Syllabification: quark === Noun === quark m (plural quarks) quark Hypernyms: fermión, partícula elemental ==== 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. ==== Hyponyms ==== quarks: quark: quark arriba · quark abajo · quark encantado · quark extraño · quark cima · quark fondo [edit] === Further reading === “quark”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8.1, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 15 December 2025