Sankey diagram

noun

A flow diagram in which the width of the arrows is proportional to the flow rate.

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Meanings

nounSankey diagram (plural Sankey diagrams)

plural Sankey diagrams

  1. A flow diagram in which the width of the arrows is proportional to the flow rate.

Origin

Named after the Irish captain Matthew Henry Phineas Riall Sankey, who used this type of diagram in 1898 to illustrate the energy efficiency of a steam engine.

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Cite this entry
APA

Sankey diagram. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Sankey%20diagram

MLA

“Sankey diagram.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Sankey%20diagram. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Sankey diagram,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Sankey%20diagram.

Source: Sankey diagram on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.