particle

[ pahr-ti-kuhl ]

noun

1. a minute portion, piece, fragment, or amount; a tiny or very small bit:

   a particle of dust; not a particle of supporting evidence.

   Synonyms: speck, grain, tittle, jot, iota, whit, mite

2. Physics.
   1. one of the extremely small constituents of matter, as an atom or nucleus.
   2. an elementary particle, quark, or gluon.
   3. a body in which the internal motion is negligible.
3. a clause or article, as of a document.
4. Grammar.
   1. (in some languages) one of the major form classes, or parts of speech, consisting of words that are neither nouns nor verbs, or of all uninflected words, or the like.
   2. such a word.
   3. a small word of functional or relational use, as an article, preposition, or conjunction, whether of a separate form class or not.
5. Roman Catholic Church. a small piece of the Host given to each lay communicant in a Eucharistic service.

particle

/ ˈpɑːtɪkəl /

noun

1. an extremely small piece of matter; speck
2. a very tiny amount; iota

   it doesn't make a particle of difference

3. a function word, esp (in certain languages) a word belonging to an uninflected class having suprasegmental or grammatical function

   questions in Japanese are indicated by the particle ``ka''

   the Greek particles ``mēn'' and ``de'' are used to express contrast

   English ``up'' is sometimes regarded as an adverbial particle

4. a common affix, such as re-, un-, or -ness
5. physics a body with finite mass that can be treated as having negligible size, and internal structure
6. See elementary particle
7. RC Church a small piece broken off from the Host at Mass
8. archaic.
   a section or clause of a document

particle

/ pär′tĭ-kəl /

1. A very small piece of solid matter.
2. An elementary particle, subatomic particle, or atomic nucleus.
3. Also called corpuscle

Other Words From

• parti·cled adjective
• inter·parti·cle adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of particle¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English word from Latin word particula. See part, -i-, -cle ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of particle¹

C14: from Latin particula a small part, from pars part

Example Sentences

In the long run, the photonic processor could lead to faster and more energy-efficient deep learning for computationally demanding applications like lidar, scientific research in astronomy and particle physics, or high-speed telecommunications.

From Science Daily

Electrons exhibit both particle and wave-like properties -- they don't simply roll like a ball.

From Science Daily

A magnetosphere is the region around a planet where its magnetic field is dominant, protecting the planet from the Sun’s destructive particles.

From Salon

This suggested that microscopic plankton living on the surface of the seas produce sulfur in the form of a gas, dimethyl sulphide, that once in the atmosphere, oxidizes and forms small particles called aerosols.

From Science Daily

Hepatitis A is spread through food or drink contaminated with tiny particles of fecal matter, according to the World Health Organization.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• fleck
• fragment
• grain
• mite
• molecule
• ray
• speck