Adimensional

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Lacking any measurable dimensions or physical attributes, an entity exists outside of any defined system of measurement or dimensional analysis
2. An entity characterized by its absence of dimensions or metrics, it does not conform to any established unit of measurement
3. Describes something that does not have length, width, height, or any measurable physical attributes

Etymology: The word is built from two parts: the prefix "a-", meaning "without" or "not", and "dimensional". The prefix comes from Ancient Greek "ἀ-" (a-), which is inherited in English from an ancient root that also gave Greek words like "anonymous" and "atheist." Attaching it to "dimensional" produces a term for something that has no measurable extent in one or more directions. "Dimensional" in turn descends from Latin "dimensio," meaning a measuring, which is formed from "dis-" (apart) and "metiri" (to measure). English took "dimension" from Latin, and "-al" (from Latin "-alis") turned it into an adjective. The result is a technical coinage rather than a traditional word, so its story lies in the logic of its parts: a measurement with nothing to measure.

Synonyms: dimensionless, non-dimensional, without dimensions, scalar, unitless