scalar

S1C3A1L1A1R1
UK/ˈskeɪ.lə/Canada, US/skeɪ.lɚ/Australia, New Zealand/ˈskæɪ.lə/

adjective

Having magnitude but not direction.

CommonScrabble 8

Meanings

adjectivescalar (not comparable)
  1. not comparablemathematicsHaving magnitude but not direction.
  2. not comparablecomputerConsisting of a single value (e.g. integer or string) rather than multiple values (e.g. array).
  3. not comparableOf, or relating to scale.

    Scalar thickening is useful for understanding the propensity of scales to coalesce in certain times and places, or even how a particular scale provides conditions for other forms of scalar production.

    2015, Raymond L Bryant, The International Handbook of Political Ecology, page 504
    1 more example

    However, it can be expected that 'scale-similarity' models of this form will be inadequate for describing non-equilibrium scalar fields resulting, for example, from non-equilibrium inlet flow conditions.

    2003, Rodney O. Fox, Computational Models for Turbulent Reacting Flows
  4. not comparableentertainmentOf or pertaining to a musical scale.
  5. not comparablenatural sciencesRelating to particles with a spin (quantum angular momentum) of 0 (known as spin 0).
  6. not comparablehuman sciencesPertaining to the dimension on which something is measured.

    Spector (2006, 2007) suggests to derive this inference as a scalar implicature.

    2014, Salvatore Pistoia Reda, Pragmatics, Semantics and the Case of Scalar Implicatures
    2 more examples

    Also, the scalar meaning in both sentences is not sensitive to context, because the truth value of the sentences does not change depending on context.

    2018, Osamu Sawada, Pragmatic Aspects of Scalar Modifiers, page 26

    In Mandarin Chinese, the same sentence containing a numeral-classifier phrase as a negative polarity item can be employed for two types of scalar inferences based on either the numeral or the noun.

    2019, Penka Stateva, Anne Reboul, Scalar Implicatures, page 8
nounscalar (plural scalars)

plural scalars

  1. mathematicsA quantity that has magnitude but not direction.
  2. businessAn amplifier whose output is a constant multiple of its input.

Synonyms & antonyms

Also see

Origin

  1. Latinscālāris
  2. Englishscalar

Borrowed from Latin scālāris, adjectival form from scāla (“a flight of steps, stairs, staircase, ladder, scale”), for *scadla, from scandere (“to climb”); compare scale. The mathematics sense was coined by Irish mathematician and astronomer William Rowan Hamilton in 1846.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Basque eskalar
  • eskalarquantity with magnitude
Bulgarian скаларен, скалар
  • скаларен (skalaren)having magnitude
  • скалар (skalar)quantity with magnitude
Chinese Mandarin 標量 /标量, 标量
  • 標量 /标量 (biāoliàng)having magnitude
  • 标量 (biāoliàng)quantity with magnitude
Czech skalární, skalár
  • skalárníhaving magnitude
  • skalárquantity with magnitude
Danish skalar
  • skalarquantity with magnitude
Dutch scalair, scalar
  • scalairhaving magnitude
  • scalarquantity with magnitude
Esperanto skalara, skalaro
  • skalarahaving magnitude
  • skalaroquantity with magnitude
Finnish skalaarinen, skalaari
  • skalaarinenhaving magnitude
  • skalaariquantity with magnitude
French scalaire, scalaire
  • scalairehaving magnitude
  • scalairerelating to scale
  • scalairequantity with magnitude
Hungarian skalár
  • skalárhaving magnitude
Icelandic einvíð stærð, tölustærð
  • einvíð stærðquantity with magnitude
  • tölustærðquantity with magnitude
  • stigastærðquantity with magnitude
Japanese スカラー, スカラー
  • スカラー (sukarā)having magnitude
  • スカラー (sukaraa)quantity with magnitude
Korean 스칼라
  • 스칼라 (seukalla)having magnitude
Polish skalarny, skalowy
  • skalarnyhaving magnitude
  • skalowyrelating to scale
  • skalarquantity with magnitude
  • skalar(electronics) amplifier
Portuguese escalar, escalar
  • escalarhaving magnitude
  • escalarrelating to scale
  • escalarquantity with magnitude
Romanian scalar, scalar
  • scalarhaving magnitude
  • scalarrelating to scale
Russian скаля́рный, скаля́р
  • скаля́рный (skaljárnyj)having magnitude
  • скаля́р (skaljár)quantity with magnitude
Spanish escalar, escalar
  • escalarhaving magnitude
  • escalarquantity with magnitude
Swedish skalär, skalär
  • skalärhaving magnitude
  • skalärquantity with magnitude
Tagalog bilangin
  • bilanginhaving magnitude
Turkish sayıl
  • sayılhaving magnitude
Vietnamese vô hướng, đại lượng vô hướng
  • vô hướnghaving magnitude
  • đại lượng vô hướngquantity with magnitude

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with scalar

All rhymes →

Anagrams

Cite this entry
APA

scalar. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/scalar

MLA

“scalar.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/scalar. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “scalar,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/scalar.

Source: scalar on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.