Huygens
or Huy·ghens
Chris·tian [kris-chuhn; Dutch kris-tee-ahn], /ˈkrɪs tʃən; Dutch ˈkrɪs tiˌɑn/, 1629–95, Dutch mathematician, physicist, and astronomer.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use Huygens in a sentence
It was discovered in 1656 by Huyghens, who counted twelve stars in the pale cloud.
Astronomy for Amateurs | Camille FlammarionIt is allowed, however, that it is Huyghens who first made those watches which went without strings or chains.
The Old Furniture Book | N. Hudson MooreTwo others were made and sent to the Dauphin of France, where Huyghens had obtained a patent for spiral-spring watches.
The Old Furniture Book | N. Hudson MooreThe dark triangular projection in the lower half of the second drawing was seen and sketched by Huyghens, 1659 A. D.
A Text-Book of Astronomy | George C. ComstockIt remained for the mechanical ingenuity of Huyghens to construct a satisfactory pendulum clock.
A History of Science, Volume 2(of 5) | Henry Smith Williams
British Dictionary definitions for Huygens
/ (ˈhaɪɡənz, Dutch ˈhœixəns) /
Christiaan (ˈkristiːˌaːn). 1629–95, Dutch physicist: first formulated the wave theory of light
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for Huygens
[ hī′gənz, hoi′gĕns ]
Dutch physicist and astronomer who in 1655 discovered Saturn's rings and its fourth satellite, using a telescope he constructed with his brother. In 1657 he built the first pendulum clock. Huygens also proposed that light consists of transverse waves that vibrate up and down perpendicular to the direction in which the light travels. This theory, which explained some properties of light better than Newton's theory, was made public in 1690.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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