POTENTIAL ENERGY

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does potential energy mean? 

• POTENTIAL ENERGY (noun)
  The noun POTENTIAL ENERGY has 1 sense:

1. the mechanical energy that a body has by virtue of its position; stored energy

  Familiarity information: POTENTIAL ENERGY used as a noun is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• POTENTIAL ENERGY (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

The mechanical energy that a body has by virtue of its position; stored energy

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural phenomena

Synonyms:

P.E.; potential energy

Hypernyms ("potential energy" is a kind of...):

mechanical energy (energy in a mechanical form)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "potential energy"):

elastic energy; elastic potential energy (potential energy that is stored when a body is deformed (as in a coiled spring))

 Context examples 

It is also is used by nutritionists in measuring the energy-producing potential of food as a unit of potential energy contained by a substance, which can be liberated when the material is oxidized, usually by combustion in the presence of oxygen.

(Calorie, NCI Thesaurus)