Definition

Describing a material or substance that does not show a clear relationship between the force applied to it and the resulting deformation.

Example

The anelastic behavior of the material made it difficult to predict how it would respond under stress.

Conversation

I was reading about materials in my science class, and I came across the term anelastic.

Oh, I've never heard of that before. What does it mean?

It refers to materials that don't have a clear relationship between stress and strain, which is pretty interesting.

That is interesting! I wonder how many materials we use are actually anelastic.

Synonyms & Antonyms

Root Explanation

Anelastic is formed from "a-" (meaning not) and "elastic" (from Greek "elastikos", meaning flexible or stretchable). The word describes a material that does not return to its original shape after being deformed, hence not elastic.

Memory Tip

Think of 'not' ('a-') being flexible ('elastic') — that's why anelastic means something that doesn't return to its original shape.

Visually Confused Words