'Vis inertiae' definitions:

Definition of 'Vis inertiae'

From: GCIDE
  • Vis \Vis\, n.
  • 1. Force; power. [1913 Webster]
  • 2. (Law) (a) Physical force. (b) Moral power. [1913 Webster]
  • Principle of vis viva (Mech.), the principle that the difference between the aggregate work of the accelerating forces of a system and that of the retarding forces is equal to one half the vis viva accumulated or lost in the system while the work is being done.
  • Vis impressa [L.] (Mech.), force exerted, as in moving a body, or changing the direction of its motion; impressed force.
  • Vis inertiae. [L.] (a) The resistance of matter, as when a body at rest is set in motion, or a body in motion is brought to rest, or has its motion changed, either in direction or in velocity. (b) Inertness; inactivity.
  • Note: Vis intertiae and inertia are not strictly synonymous. The former implies the resistance itself which is given, while the latter implies merely the property by which it is given.
  • Vis mortua [L.] (Mech.), dead force; force doing no active work, but only producing pressure.
  • Vis vitae, or Vis vitalis [L.] (Physiol.), vital force.
  • Vis viva [L.] (Mech.), living force; the force of a body moving against resistance, or doing work, in distinction from vis mortua, or dead force; the kinetic energy of a moving body; the capacity of a moving body to do work by reason of its being in motion. See Kinetic energy, in the Note under Energy. The term vis viva is not usually understood to include that part of the kinetic energy of the body which is due to the vibrations of its molecules. [1913 Webster]

Definition of 'vis inertiae'

From: GCIDE
  • 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, unless acted on by some external force; -- sometimes called {vis inerti[ae]}. The inertia of a body is proportional to its mass. [1913 Webster +PJC]
  • 2. Inertness; indisposition to motion, exertion, or action; lack of energy; sluggishness. [1913 Webster]
  • Men . . . have immense irresolution and inertia. --Carlyle. [1913 Webster]
  • 3. (Med.) Lack of activity; sluggishness; -- said especially of the uterus, when, in labor, its contractions have nearly or wholly ceased. [1913 Webster]
  • Center of inertia. (Mech.) See under Center. [1913 Webster]