inertia

inertia
1. The tendency of a physical body to oppose any force tending to move it from a position of rest or to change its uniform motion. 2. Denoting inactivity or lack of force, lack of mental or physical vigor, or sluggishness of thought or action. [L. want of skill, laziness]
- magnetic i. SYN: hysteresis (2).
- psychic i. a psychiatric term denoting resistance to any change in ideas or to progress; fixation of an idea.
- uterine i. absence of effective uterine contractions during labor; primary uterine i., true uterine i., uterine i. that occurs when the uterus fails to contract with sufficient force to effect continuous dilation or effacement of the cervix or descent or rotation of the fetal head, and when the uterus is easily indentable at the acme of contraction; secondary uterine i., uterine i. that occurs when the uterine contractions are initially vigorous but then decrease in vigor, and the progress of labor ceases.

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in·er·tia in-'ər-shə, -shē-ə n
1 a) a property of matter by which it remains at rest or in uniform motion in the same straight line unless acted upon by some external force
b) an analogous property of other physical quantities (as electricity)
2) lack of activity or movement used esp. of the uterus in labor when its contractions are weak or irregular

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n.
(in physiology) sluggishness or absence of activity in certain smooth muscles. In uterine inertia the muscular wall of the uterus fails to contract adequately during labour, making the process excessively long. This inertia may be present from the start of labour or it may develop because of exhaustion following strong contractions.

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in·er·tia (in-urґshə) [L.] inactivity; inability to move spontaneously.

Medical dictionary. 2011.

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  • Inertia — In*er ti*a, n. [L., idleness, fr. iners idle. See {Inert}.] [1913 Webster] 1. (Physics) That property of matter by which it tends when at rest to remain so, and when in motion to continue in motion, and in the same straight line or direction,… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • inertia — in‧er‧tia [ɪˈnɜːʆə ǁ ɜːr ] noun [uncountable] a tendency for a situation to stay the same for a long time: • He believes that suppressed demand after years of inertia will lead to a housing recovery this year. * * * inertia UK US /ɪˈnɜːʃə/ noun… …   Financial and business terms

  • inertia — 1713, introduced as a term in physics 17c. by German astronomer and physician Johann Kepler (1571 1630), from L. inertia unskillfulness, idleness, from iners (gen. inertis) unskilled, inactive; see INERT (Cf. inert). Used in Modern Latin by… …   Etymology dictionary

  • Inertĭa — (lat.), 1) Trägheit, Faulheit; 2) Unvermögen, entweder eines Organs, bes. wegen Erschlaffung u. Reizlosigkeit, als auch einer Flüssigkeit, des lebenden Körpers, wegen Mangels an gehöriger Mischung …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Inertĭa — (lat.), Trägheit, Beharrungsvermögen …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • inertia — I noun apathy, dormancy, dullness, firmness, immobility, immobilization, immovability, inability to act, inaction, inactivity, indecision, indisposition to move, indolence, inertness, inexcitability, irresolution, lack of activity, lack of motion …   Law dictionary

  • inertia — [n] disinclination to move; lifelessness apathy, deadness, drowsiness, dullness, idleness, immobility, immobilization, inactivity, indolence, languor, lassitude, laziness, lethargy, listlessness, oscitancy, paralysis, passivity, sloth,… …   New thesaurus

  • inertia — ► NOUN 1) a tendency to do nothing or to remain unchanged. 2) Physics a property of matter by which it continues in its existing state of rest or uniform motion in a straight line, unless changed by an external force. DERIVATIVES inertial… …   English terms dictionary

  • inertia — [in ʉr′shə, in ʉr′shē ə] n. [L, lack of art or skill, ignorance < iners: see INERT] 1. Physics the tendency of matter to remain at rest if at rest, or, if moving, to keep moving in the same direction, unless affected by some outside force 2. a …   English World dictionary

  • Inertia — In common usage, however, people may also use the term inertia to refer to an object s amount of resistance to change in velocity (which is quantified by its mass), and sometimes its momentum, depending on context (e.g. this object has a lot of… …   Wikipedia

  • inertia — inertial, adj. /in err sheuh, i nerr /, n. 1. inertness, esp. with regard to effort, motion, action, and the like; inactivity; sluggishness. 2. Physics. a. the property of matter by which it retains its state of rest or its velocity along a… …   Universalium

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