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Added 9 October 2026

scalar

/ˈskeɪ.lə/ noun

Latin root: scālāris Coined: 1846, by William Rowan Hamilton Wiktionary

noun Definition from WordNet 3.1, Princeton University. Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about scalar at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

A variable quantity that cannot be resolved into components.

adjective

Of or relating to a musical scale.
he played some basic scalar patterns on his guitar
Of or relating to a directionless magnitude (such as mass or speed etc.) that is completely specified by its magnitude.
scalar quantity

Origin

Borrowed from Latin scālāris, adjectival form from scāla (“a flight of steps, stairs, staircase, ladder, scale”), for *scadla, from scandere (“to climb”); compare scale. The mathematics sense was coined by Irish mathematician and astronomer William Rowan Hamilton in 1846.

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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