| the elasticlike force existing in the surface of a body, esp. a liquid, tending to minimize the area of the surface, caused by asymmetries in the intermolecular forces between surface molecules. |

| surface tension n.
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surface tension n.
A property of liquids arising from unbalanced molecular cohesive forces at or near the surface, as a result of which the surface tends to contract and exhibit properties resembling those of a stretched elastic membrane.
A measure of this property.