ATOMIC THEORY

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 Dictionary entry overview: What does atomic theory mean? 

• ATOMIC THEORY (noun)
  The noun ATOMIC THEORY has 2 senses:

1. a theory of the structure of the atom

2. (chemistry) any theory in which all matter is composed of tiny discrete finite indivisible indestructible particles

  Familiarity information: ATOMIC THEORY used as a noun is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• ATOMIC THEORY (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A theory of the structure of the atom

Classified under:

Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents

Hypernyms ("atomic theory" is a kind of...):

scientific theory (a theory that explains scientific observations)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "atomic theory"):

Bohr theory ((physics) a theory of atomic structure that combined Rutherford's model with the quantum theory; electrons orbiting a nucleus can only be in certain stationary energy states and light is emitted when electrons jump from one energy state to another)

Rutherford atom (first modern concept of atomic structure; all of the positive charge and most of the mass of the atom are contained in a compact nucleus; a number of electrons (equal to the atomic number) occupy the rest of the volume of the atom and neutralize the positive charge)

Holonyms ("atomic theory" is a part of...):

atomic physics; nuclear physics; nucleonics (the branch of physics that studies the internal structure of atomic nuclei)

Sense 2

Meaning:

(chemistry) any theory in which all matter is composed of tiny discrete finite indivisible indestructible particles

Classified under:

Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents

Synonyms:

atomic theory; atomism; atomist theory; atomistic theory

Context example:

the ancient Greek philosophers Democritus and Epicurus held atomic theories of the universe

Hypernyms ("atomic theory" is a kind of...):

theory (a well-substantiated explanation of some aspect of the natural world; an organized system of accepted knowledge that applies in a variety of circumstances to explain a specific set of phenomena)

Domain category:

chemical science; chemistry (the science of matter; the branch of the natural sciences dealing with the composition of substances and their properties and reactions)