hydrostatic

Meanings

1. 1adjectivebefore a nountechnical

   Concerning liquids that are not moving and the pressure they put on things inside them or on their container walls.

   Grammar: Almost always before a noun: hydrostatic pressure.

   Patterns

   • hydrostatic pressure
   • hydrostatic balance

   Hydrostatic pressure rises as a diver goes deeper.

   The dam was designed to resist hydrostatic force.

   Engineers measured the hydrostatic load on the tank walls.

2. 2adjectivebefore a nountechnical

   Using the pressure of a confined liquid to transmit power, as in a vehicle's drive system.

   Grammar: Used in engineering: a hydrostatic transmission.

   Patterns

   • hydrostatic transmission
   • hydrostatic drive

   The tractor has a hydrostatic transmission with no clutch.

   Hydrostatic drives give smooth control at low speeds.

Common combinations

hydrostatic pressure

Hydrostatic pressure depends on the depth of the fluid.

hydrostatic equilibrium

A star stays stable when it is in hydrostatic equilibrium.

hydrostatic test

Pipes are checked with a hydrostatic test before use.

hydrostatic paradox

The hydrostatic paradox shows that shape does not change pressure.

hydrostatic transmission

The mower uses a hydrostatic transmission.

Synonyms and how they differ

static

Static means not moving in a general sense, while hydrostatic refers to fluids.

hydraulic

Hydraulic describes machinery driven by moving liquid under pressure, whereas hydrostatic focuses on liquid at rest.

Opposites

Word family

hydrostatics noun

the science of fluids at rest

hydrostatically adverb

in a hydrostatic way

hydrodynamic adjective

concerning fluids in motion

Commonly confused: hydrostatic or hydrodynamic?

Practice

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