| Library / English Dictionary |
GRAVITATION
| Pronunciation (US): |  | (GB): | |
I. (noun)
Sense 1
Meaning:
A figurative movement toward some attraction
Example:
the gravitation of the middle class to the suburbs
Classified under:
Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents
Hypernyms ("gravitation" is a kind of...):
drift; movement; trend (a general tendency to change (as of opinion))
Derivation:
gravitate (be attracted to)
gravitate (move toward)
Sense 2
Meaning:
Movement downward resulting from gravitational attraction
Example:
irrigation by gravitation rather than by pumps
Classified under:
Hypernyms ("gravitation" is a kind of...):
change of location; travel (a movement through space that changes the location of something)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "gravitation"):
drop; fall (a free and rapid descent by the force of gravity)
Antonym:
levitation (movement upward in virtue of lightness)
Derivation:
gravitate (move due to the pull of gravitation)
gravitational (of or relating to or caused by gravitation)
Sense 3
Meaning:
(physics) the force of attraction between all masses in the universe; especially the attraction of the earth's mass for bodies near its surface
Example:
gravitation cannot be held responsible for people falling in love
Synonyms:
gravitation; gravitational attraction; gravitational force; gravity
Classified under:
Nouns denoting natural phenomena
Hypernyms ("gravitation" is a kind of...):
attraction; attractive force (the force by which one object attracts another)
Domain category:
natural philosophy; physics (the science of matter and energy and their interactions)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "gravitation"):
solar gravity (the gravity of the sun)
Derivation:
gravitate (move due to the pull of gravitation)
gravitational (of or relating to or caused by gravitation)
