Meanings
plural tensors · plural tensores
- linear algebraA mathematical object that describes linear relations on scalars, vectors, matrices and other algebraic objects, and is represented as a multidimensional array.First known use 18th c.
The tensor #92;alpha#95;#123;ij#125; should really be called a “tensor of second rank,” because it has two indexes. A vector—with one index—is a tensor of the first rank, and a scalar—with no index—is a tensor of zero rank.
1963, Richard Feynman, “Chapter 31, Tensors”, in The Feynman Lectures on Physics, volume II- computingA multidimensional array with (at least) two dimensions.
- obsoletemathematicsA norm operation on the quaternion algebra.
present singular third person tensors · participle present tensoring · participle past tensored · past tensored
- To compute the tensor product of two tensors or algebraic structures.
Origin
- GermanTensor
- New Latintensor“that which stretches”
- Englishtensor
Borrowed from New Latin tensor (“that which stretches”), equivalent to tense + -or. Anatomical sense from 1704. Introduced in the 1840s by William Rowan Hamilton as an algebraic quantity unrelated to the modern notion of tensor. The contemporary mathematical meaning was introduced (as German Tensor) by Woldemar Voigt (1898) and adopted in English from 1915 (in the context of general relativity), obscuring the earlier Hamiltonian sense. The mathematical object is so named because an early application of tensors was the study of materials stretching under tension. (See, for example, Cauchy stress tensor on Wikipedia.Wikipedia )
More words from New Latin, German
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Arabic مُوتَر, مُوتَر
- مُوتَر (mūtar)function of several variables
- مُوتَر (mūtar)matrix of matrices
Bulgarian флексор, тензор
- флексор (fleksor)muscle
- тензор (tenzor)image of a tuple under a tensor product map
- тензор (tenzor)function of several variables
- тензор (tenzor)matrix of matrices
Chinese Cantonese 張量 /张量
- 張量 /张量 (zoeng¹ loeng⁶)function of several variables
Chinese Mandarin 張肌 /张肌, 張量 /张量
- 張肌 /张肌 (zhāngjī)muscle
- 張量 /张量 (zhāngliàng)function of several variables
Czech tenzor
- tenzorimage of a tuple under a tensor product map
Esperanto tensoro
- tensoroimage of a tuple under a tensor product map
Finnish jännittäjälihas, tensori
- jännittäjälihasmuscle
- tensoriimage of a tuple under a tensor product map
- tensorifunction of several variables
- tensorimatrix of matrices
French tenseur
- tenseurfunction of several variables
German Tensor, Tensor
- Tensorimage of a tuple under a tensor product map
- Tensorfunction of several variables
- Tensormatrix of matrices
Greek τανυστής
- τανυστής (tanystís)matrix of matrices
Hindi प्रदिश
- प्रदिश (pradiś)image of a tuple under a tensor product map
Icelandic þinur
- þinurimage of a tuple under a tensor product map
Italian tensore, tensore
- tensoremuscle
- tensoreimage of a tuple under a tensor product map
- tensorefunction of several variables
- tensorematrix of matrices
Norwegian tensor, tensor
- tensorimage of a tuple under a tensor product map
- tensorfunction of several variables
- tensormatrix of matrices
Polish napinacz, tensor
- napinaczmuscle
- tensorimage of a tuple under a tensor product map
- tensorfunction of several variables
- tensormatrix of matrices
Romanian tensor
- tensorimage of a tuple under a tensor product map
Russian те́нзор, те́нзор
- те́нзор (ténzor)function of several variables
- те́нзор (ténzor)matrix of matrices
Swedish tensor, tensor
- tensorimage of a tuple under a tensor product map
- tensorfunction of several variables
- tensormatrix of matrices
Tagalog kalamnang pamatak, katuganhan
- kalamnang pamatakmuscle
- katuganhanimage of a tuple under a tensor product map
- katuganuhanimage of a tuple under a tensor product map
- katuganhanfunction of several variables
- katuganuhanfunction of several variables
- katuganhanmatrix of matrices
- katuganuhanmatrix of matrices
Turkish tensör, tensör
- tensörimage of a tuple under a tensor product map
- tensörfunction of several variables
- tensörmatrix of matrices
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with tensor
Anagrams
Cite this entry
tensor. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/tensor
“tensor.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/tensor. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “tensor,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/tensor.
Source: tensor on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.