Meaning & use
convection
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Meaning
noununcountabletechnical
The transfer of heat by the movement of a liquid or gas.
Grammar: Uncountable; used with a singular verb, e.g., 'Convection is important in weather.'
Patterns
- convection currents
- convection oven
- heat transfer by convection
Convection is responsible for many weather patterns, such as thunderstorms.
A convection oven uses fans to circulate hot air.
The pot of soup cooled by convection, with warm liquid rising and cool liquid sinking.
Common combinations
- convection currents
- Convection currents in the ocean help distribute heat around the globe.
- convection oven
- She baked the cookies in a convection oven, so they cooked faster.
- natural convection
- Natural convection occurs when warm air rises and cooler air sinks.
- forced convection
- A fan creates forced convection to cool the room quickly.
Synonyms and how they differ
- heat transfer
- A broader term that includes conduction and radiation as well as convection.
Opposites
Word family
- convect verb
- To transfer heat by convection.
- convector noun
- A heating device that uses convection.
Commonly confused: convection or conduction?
convection vs conduction
Conduction is heat transfer through direct contact, while convection involves a moving fluid.
Practice
Choose the correct word: 'The transfer of heat through the movement of air is called _____.'
Choose one answer.
'Convection' is the noun for heat transfer by moving fluid. 'Conduction' is direct contact, 'convector' is a device, and 'convect' is the verb.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “convection”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.