Inertia: meaning, definitions and examples

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inertia

[ ɪˈnɜːrʃə ]

^{Context #1}

physics

A tendency to do nothing or to remain unchanged.

Synonyms

apathy, inaction, inactivity, lethargy, sluggishness

Examples of usage

The ball kept rolling due to the inertia of motion.
She felt a sense of inertia when it came to making decisions.

^{Context #2}

psychology

A lack of motivation or drive to take action.

Synonyms

indolence, passivity, sloth

Examples of usage

His inertia prevented him from pursuing his goals.
The team's inertia was hindering progress on the project.

Translations

Translations of the word "inertia" in other languages:

🇵🇹 inércia

🇮🇳 जड़त्व

🇩🇪 Trägheit

🇮🇩 inersia

🇺🇦 інерція

🇵🇱 bezwładność

🇯🇵 慣性

🇫🇷 inertie

🇪🇸 inercia

🇹🇷 eylemsizlik

🇰🇷 관성

🇸🇦 القصور الذاتي

🇨🇿 setrvačnost

🇸🇰 zotrvačnosť

🇨🇳 惯性

🇸🇮 inercija

🇮🇸 tregða

🇰🇿 инерция

🇬🇪 ინერცია

🇦🇿 inertiya

🇲🇽 inercia

Word origin

The term 'inertia' originated from the Latin word 'iners', meaning idle or lazy. It was first used in the context of physics by Galileo and later developed into a fundamental concept in Newtonian mechanics. In psychology, the concept of inertia has been applied to describe a lack of motivation or drive. Today, inertia is widely used in various fields to describe a resistance to change or a tendency to remain unchanged.