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Definition(s) of “T”
t
abbreviation
long or metric ton(s).
symbol ( t ) Statistics
a number characterizing the distribution of a sample taken from a population with a normal distribution (see Student's t-test ).
ton 1 |tən| (abbr.: t also tn)
noun
1 (also short ton) a unit of weight equal to 2,000 pounds avoirdupois (907.19 kg).
• (also long ton) a unit of weight equal to 2,240 pounds avoirdupois (1016.05 kg).
• short for metric ton .
• (also displacement ton) a unit of measurement of a ship's weight representing the weight of water it displaces, equal to 2,240 pounds or 35 cubic feet (0.99 cu m).
• (also freight ton) a unit of weight or volume of sea cargo, equal to a metric ton (1,000kg) or 40 cubic feet.
• (also gross ton) a unit of gross internal capacity, equal to 100 cubic feet (2.83 cu m).
• (also net or register ton) an equivalent unit of net internal capacity.
• a unit of refrigerating power able to freeze 2,000 pounds of water at 0°C in 24 hours.
• a measure of capacity for various materials, esp. 40 cubic feet of timber.
2 (usu. a ton of/tons of) informal a large number or amount : all of a sudden I had tons of friends | that bag of yours weighs a ton.
PHRASES
like a ton of bricks see brick .
ORIGIN Middle English : variant of tun , both spellings being used for the container and the weight. The senses were differentiated in the late 17th cent.
ton 2 |tô n |
noun
fashionable style or distinction.
• ( the ton) [treated as sing. or pl. ] fashionable society.
ORIGIN French, from Latin tonus (see tone ).
top quark (abbr.: t)
noun
a hypothetical quark with a mass of 360,000 times that of an electron and a charge of +2/3.
-t 1
suffix
equivalent to -ed 2 (as in crept, sent, slept).
-t 2
suffix
equivalent to -est 2 (as in shalt).
T 1 |tē| (also t)
noun ( pl. Ts or T's )
1 the twentieth letter of the alphabet.
• denoting the next after S in a set of items, categories, etc.
2 ( T) (also tee) a shape like that of a capital T : [in combination ] make a T-shaped wound in the rootstock and insert the cut bud. See also T-square , etc.
PHRASES
cross the T historical (of a naval force) cross in front of an enemy force approximately at right angles, securing a tactical advantage for gunnery.
to a T informal exactly; to perfection : I baked it to a T, and of course it was delicious.
T 2
abbreviation
• [in combination ] (in units of measurement) tera- (10 12): : 12 Tbytes of data storage.
• tesla.
• Brit. (in names of sports clubs) Town: : Mansfield T.
symbol
• temperature.
• Chemistry the hydrogen isotope tritium.
tesla |ˈteslə| (abbr.: T)
noun Physics
the SI unit of magnetic flux density.
ORIGIN 1960s: named after N. Tesla .
tritium |ˈtritēəm; ˈtri sh-|
noun Chemistry
a radioactive isotope of hydrogen with a mass approximately three times that of the common protium isotope. (Symbol: T)
Discovered in 1934, tritium has two neutrons as well as a proton in the nucleus. It occurs in minute traces in nature and can be made artificially from lithium or deuterium in nuclear reactors; it is used as a fuel in thermonuclear bombs.
ORIGIN 1930s: from modern Latin, from Greek tritos ‘third.’
absolute temperature
noun
a temperature measured from absolute zero in kelvins. (Symbol: T)