Entropy
/ˈɛn.trə.pi/noun
A measure of disorder, randomness, or unavailable energy in a system.
Did you know?Entropy was coined in 1865 by Rudolf Clausius from Greek en- (“in”) + tropē (“a turning”), so the word began as a technical description of transformation before it became the signature term of cosmic decay.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*trep-
“to turn, twist, or rotate”
Ancient Greek
Greek
τροπή (tropḗ)
“a turn, turning, or change”
Late Latin
Latin
entropia
“a turning toward; coined technical form”
1865
German
Entropie
“Clausius’s thermodynamic term for a measure of unavailable energy in a system”
Late 19th Century
English
entropy
“a measure of disorder or unavailable energy”
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