Jolly balance

noun

An instrument for determining specific gravity by comparing how much an object stretches a spring when held in a pan hanging in the air to how much that same object stretches a spring when held in a pan underwater.

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Meanings

nounJolly balance (plural Jolly balances)

plural Jolly balances

  1. An instrument for determining specific gravity by comparing how much an object stretches a spring when held in a pan hanging in the air to how much that same object stretches a spring when held in a pan underwater.

Origin

Invented by the German physicist Philipp von Jolly in 1864.

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Cite this entry
APA

Jolly balance. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Jolly%20balance

MLA

“Jolly balance.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Jolly%20balance. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Jolly balance,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Jolly%20balance.

Source: Jolly balance on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.