tauon

T1A1U1O1N1
/ˈtaʊɑn/

noun

An unstable elementary particle which is a type of lepton, having a mass almost twice that of a proton, a negative charge, and a spin of ½; it decays into hadrons (usually pions) or other leptons, and neutrinos.

Similar
tautau leptontau particletau-minus particle
OriginAncient Greek τρίτος →
Scrabble 5
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Meanings

nountauon (plural tauons)

plural tauons

  1. An unstable elementary particle which is a type of lepton, having a mass almost twice that of a proton, a negative charge, and a spin of ½; it decays into hadrons (usually pions) or other leptons, and neutrinos.

    Synonyms: tau, tau lepton, tau particle

Synonyms & antonyms

nounAn unstable elementary particle which is a type of lepton, having a mass almost twice that of a proton, a negative charge, and a spin of ½; it decays into hadrons (usually pions) or other leptons, and neutrinos.

Similar
tautau leptontau particle

More synonyms by meaning

nouna lepton of very great mass

Similar
tau-minus particle
Broader
lepton

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Ancient Greekτρίτος“third”
  2. Englishtauon

From tau + -on, named after the Greek letter ταῦ (taû), the initial letter of Ancient Greek τρίτος (trítos, “third”), being the third lepton discovered.

More words from Ancient Greek

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Bulgarian таон, тау-лептон
  • таон (taon)particle
  • тау-лептон (tau-lepton)particle
Catalan tauó
  • tauóparticle
Dutch tauon, taudeeltje
  • tauonparticle
  • taudeeltjeparticle
Esperanto taŭono
  • taŭonoparticle
Finnish tau
  • tauparticle
French tauon, tau
  • tauonparticle
  • tauparticle
Icelandic táeind
  • táeindparticle
Italian tauone
  • tauoneparticle
Japanese タウ粒子
  • タウ粒子 (tau ryūshi)particle
Polish taon
  • taonparticle
Portuguese tauão, táuon
  • tauãoparticle
  • táuonparticle
Russian тау-лептон, таон
  • тау-лептон (tau-lepton)particle
  • таон (taon)particle
Swedish tauon
  • tauonparticle
Tagalog taw tungapik
  • taw tungapikparticle

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

auton
Cite this entry
APA

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

MLA

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

Chicago

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

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