siemens

IPA/ˈsiːmənz/
KK[sˈimənz]IPA/ˈsiːmənz/

siemens — noun

1. the standard scientific unit for how easily electricity passes through a materia

1.nounC1
Definition

the standard scientific unit for how easily electricity passes through a material

Example

Ilan checked the lab meter; the salt water measured 3 siemens.

collocation: measured in siemens

The manual says this sensor can handle 0.5 siemens safely.

decimal quantity: 0.5 siemens

Common collocations
  • measured in siemens
  • conductance in siemens
  • siemens per metre
Synonyms
  • mho

    older name for the same unit, now uncommon outside older technical writing

Usage Note

The form is the same in singular and plural: you say '1 siemens' and '5 siemens'. It is usually written after a number, and its symbol is the uppercase letter 'S'.

Common Mistakes

The resistor has a siemens of 100.
The resistor has a conductance of 100 siemens.
siemens names the unit, while conductance names the property being measured.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Siemens and mho name the same unit of electrical conductance, so they refer to how easily electricity moves through a material. In modern writing, siemens is the standard SI term and the one you will see in textbooks, lab reports, and product manuals. Mho is older and now appears mainly in historical or specialist writing. Ohm is not another name for siemens: it measures resistance instead, which is the opposite idea. A higher number of ohms means lower conductance in siemens. If a part has 2 ohms of resistance, its conductance is 0.5 siemens.

siemens ↗mho ↗ohm

Common collocations

Nouns

Phrases

  • siemens per metre

Prepositions

  • in siemens

Etymology

GermanEnglish

The unit was named in modern scientific English after the German engineer and inventor Ernst Werner von Siemens, whose work helped shape electrical engineering in the nineteenth century.

First known use

1933

1933, in the meaning defined above