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Definition of gamma
1 : the 3rd letter of the Greek alphabet — see alphabet table
2 : the degree of contrast of a developed photographic image or of a video image
3 : a unit of magnetic flux density equal to one nanotesla
4 : gamma ray gamma counter
5 : microgram
People Are Reading
Recent Examples of gamma from the Web
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The Incredible Hulk roller coaster shoots out of the gamma-ray accelerator, turns upside down and dives.
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A second point of contention is how quickly the scope can shift from a wide-field survey mode to one that would focus on transient phenomena, such as gamma ray bursts and supernovae.
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The flare-up occurred when the star's massive, twisting magnetic field ripped open its crust, releasing an explosion of gamma rays.
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While the exact reason why is still a mystery, scientists say that stripe patterns increase our brains' gamma oscillations, which are linked to both headaches and seizures.
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There are hypotheses about what FRBs could be—perhaps low-energy gamma-ray bursts or imploding neutron stars—but so far these are just theories.
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After 12 weeks of daily yoga and coherent breathing, the subjects’ depressive symptoms significantly decreased and their levels of gamma-aminobutyric acid, a brain chemical that has calming and anti-anxiety effects, had increased.
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The flare-up occurred when the star's massive, twisting magnetic field ripped open its crust, releasing an explosion of gamma rays.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'gamma'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of gamma
Middle English, borrowed from Latin, borrowed from Greek gȧmma, borrowed from Phoenician *gaml-, perhaps with the original sense “throwing stick”
gamma
Definition of gamma
1 : of, relating to, or being one of three or more closely related chemical substances
2 : third in position in the structure of an organic molecule from a particular group or atom —symbol γ
Recent Examples of gamma from the Web
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The machine uses gamma rays to shrink brain tumors as an alternative to open-skull surgery, Andy Marso reports.
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World View has since carried other experiments, including a gamma ray detector and a remote-sensing system.
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These are caused by the collapse of a massive star into a black hole or the collision of a pair of the dense stellar remnants called neutron stars, and squirt gamma rays but only in one direction.
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In the 1960s, when gamma-ray bursts were first detected, scientists didn’t know what to make of them.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'gamma'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of gamma
attributive use of 1gamma
GAMMA Defined for English Language Learners
gamma
playDefinition of gamma for English Language Learners
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: the third letter of the Greek alphabet
Medical Dictionary
gamma
γ-
Medical Definition of gamma
1: of or relating to one of three or more closely related chemical substances the gamma chain of hemoglobin γ-yohimbine—used somewhat arbitrarily to specify ordinal relationship or a particular physical form and especially one that is allotropic, isomeric, or stereoisomeric (as in gamma benzene hexachloride)
2: third in position in the structure of an organic molecule from a particular group or atom; also : occurring at or having a structure characterized by such a position γ-hydroxy acids
3of streptococci : producing no hemolysis on blood agar plates
Learn More about gamma
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See words that rhyme with gamma Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about gamma
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