Rankine scale

proper noun

A scale for measuring temperature, with zero defined as absolute zero and degrees having the same measure as the degree Fahrenheit of the Fahrenheit scale.

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Meanings

proper nounthe Rankine scale
  1. A scale for measuring temperature, with zero defined as absolute zero and degrees having the same measure as the degree Fahrenheit of the Fahrenheit scale.

Origin

Named after the Scottish engineer and physicist William John Macquorn Rankine (1820–1872) who proposed the scale in 1859.

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Cite this entry
APA

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

MLA

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

Chicago

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

Source: Rankine scale on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.