Momentum Meaning
/ˌmə(ʊ)ˈmɛntəm/Definition, CEFR level C1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounOf a body in motion: the tendency of a body to maintain its inertial motion; the product of its mass and velocity, or the vector sum of the products of its masses and velocities.
nounStrength or force gained by motion or movement.
Sentence Examples
As the days passed, our campaign grew in momentum.
This is due to conservation of angular momentum.
The fight for his release gathers momentum each day.
Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms:
Antonyms:
None
CEFR Practice Quiz
The ball rolling down the hill gained ____ and moved faster with time.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The team's success in the previous game gave them a lot of ____ as they prepared for the final match of the season.
Word Origin & History
From Latin mōmentum. Doublet of moment and movement.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"The travellers swarm forth from the cars. All are full of the momentum which they have caught from their mode of conveyance."
— 1843, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Mosses from an Old Manse, The Old Apple Dealer:
"Their intention to become husband and wife, at first halting and timorous, had accumulated momentum with the lapse of hours, till it now bore down every obstacle in its course."
— 1882, Thomas Hardy, chapter II, in Two on a Tower. A Romance. [...] In Three Volumes, volume II, London: Sampson Low, Marston, Searle, & Rivington, […], →OCLC, page 31:
"Though his account of written communication over the past 5,000 years necessarily has a powerful forward momentum, his diversions down the fascinating byways of the subject are irresistible ..."
— 2013 September 14, Jane Shilling, “The Golden Thread: the Story of Writing, by Ewan Clayton, review [print edition: Illuminating language]”, in The Daily Telegraph (Review), page R29:
Explore More C1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The ball rolling down the hill gained ____ and moved faster with time.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The team's success in the previous game gave them a lot of ____ as they prepared for the final match of the season.