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binding energy
noun
: the energy required to break up a molecule, atom, or atomic nucleus completely into its constituent particles
Examples of binding energy in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The researchers also confirmed that the goldene has a higher binding energy than regular gold; this should help expand its ability to catalyze or jump-start chemical reactions.
—Rachel Nuwer, Scientific American, 12 June 2024
For the Earth, our binding energy is somewhere around 2.5x1032 Joules.
—Paul Sutter, Ars Technica, 27 Mar. 2023
The weak binding energy means that these bodies must have formed in their current orientation, rather than originating elsewhere and later becoming a pair, which points to a starlike-formation mechanism.
—Katelyn Allers, Scientific American, 1 Aug. 2021
When a star collapses into an ultradense object like a pulsar or black hole, some of its matter turns into what’s called gravitational binding energy.
—Gabriel Popkin, Discover Magazine, 12 Mar. 2015
That suggests each pentaquark is just a baryon bound to a meson, with a tiny bit of mass taken up in binding energy.
—Adrian Cho, Science | AAAS, 5 June 2019
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Word History
First Known Use
1907, in the meaning defined above
Dictionary Entries Near binding energy
Cite this Entry
“Binding energy.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/binding%20energy. Accessed 23 Dec. 2024.
Kids Definition
binding energy
noun
: the energy required to break up a molecule, atom, or atomic nucleus completely into the particles that make it up
More from Merriam-Webster on binding energy
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about binding energy
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