Newtonian

American  

[noo-toh-nee-uhn, nyoo-] / nuˈtoʊ ni ən, nyu- /

adjective

1. of or relating to Sir Isaac Newton or to his theories or discoveries.

   Newtonian physics.

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Newtonian British  

/ njuːˈtəʊnɪən /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or based on the theories of Sir Isaac Newton

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Other Word Forms

• non-Newtonian adjective
• post-Newtonian adjective
• pre-Newtonian adjective

Etymology

Origin of Newtonian

First recorded in 1705–15; Newton + -ian

Example Sentences

Monjo’s theory helps unify scientific concepts of Newtonian gravity with our knowledge of electromagnetism.

From Salon

Studies on the shear behavior of viscoelastic fluids, created by introducing polymers into Newtonian fluids, have already been conducted in recent years.

From Science Daily

The researchers also showed that when the capsules are spherical, the metafluid behaves like a Newtonian fluid, meaning its viscosity only changes in response to temperature.

From Science Daily

A new staging presented by Bedlam makes a valiant effort to adapt Stoppard’s cerebral probes into chaos theory, Newtonian law, thermodynamics and metaphysics for a 2023 audience, but the result is a muddled one.

From New York Times

But in Albert Einstein’s conception of the universe, space and time are one, and this single spacetime isn’t something absolute but can warp in ways that don’t fit with Newtonian ways of thinking.

From Scientific American