Dictionary Definition
lens
Noun
1 a transparent optical device used to converge
or diverge transmitted light and to form images [syn: lense, lens
system]
2 genus of small erect or climbing herbs with
pinnate leaves and small inconspicuous white flowers and small
flattened pods: lentils [syn: genus
Lens]
3 (metaphor) a channel through which something
can be seen or understood; "the writer is the lens through which
history can be seen"
4 biconvex transparent body situated behind the
iris in the eye; it focuses light waves on the retina [syn:
crystalline
lens]
5 electronic equipment that uses a magnetic or
electric field in order to focus a beam of electrons [syn: electron
lens]
User Contributed Dictionary
English
Etymology
'lens, a "lentil bean"Pronunciation
Noun
- An object, usually made of glass, that focuses or defocuses the light that passes through it.
- A device which focuses or defocuses electron beams.
- A convex shape bounded by two circular arcs, joined at their endpoints, the corresponding concave shape being a lune.
- A genus of the legume family.
- The transparent crystalline structure in the eye.
Related terms
Translations
object focusing or defocusing the light passing
through it
- Czech: čočka
- Finnish: linssi
- Hungarian: lencse
- Japanese: レンズ
- Portuguese: lente
- Serbian: sočivo
- Spanish: lente
device which focuses or defocuses electron beams
- Finnish: poikkeutuskela
geometry: convex shape bounded by two circular
arcs
- Finnish: linssi
biology: genus of the legume family
- Finnish: linssi
anatomy: transparent crystalline structure in
the eye
- Finnish: mykiö, linssi
- ttbc Arabic: عدسة
- ttbc Dutch: lens
- ttbc Esperanto: lenso
- ttbc French: lentille
- ttbc Georgian: Ⴍსპი
- ttbc German: Linse , Objektiv (camera lens)
- ttbc Greek: φακός
- ttbc Hebrew: עדשה (ah-dah-SHAH)
- ttbc Indonesian: lensa
- ttbc Italian: lente
- ttbc Latvian: lēca (1), (2), (5)
- ttbc Persian: addasi(عدسی)
- ttbc Polish: soczewka
- ttbc Slovak: šošovka , objektív (camera lens)
- ttbc Swedish: lins
- ttbc Thai: เลนส์ (lens)
- ttbc Turkish: mercek
- ttbc Yiddish: לינז (linz; also אָפטיש גלאָז [OP-tish glahz])
Verb
- To film.
- To become thinner towards the edges.
Latin
Noun
- A lentil bean.
Extensive Definition
Lens can refer to:
In optics
- Lens
(optics), an optical element with perfect or approximate axial
symmetry which transmits and refracts light
- Lens (anatomy), a part of the eye
- Corrective lens for correction of human vision
- Photographic lens, a lens designed for use on a camera. See also :Category:Photographic lenses
- Sunglass lenses, which are light-attenuating elements
Focussing of other radiation and forces
- Gravitational lens, a massive astronomical object which bends the light from objects beyond it
- Electrostatic lens, a device used to focus or collimate electron beams
- Explosive lens, a shaped explosive charge with focussed blast used primarily in nuclear weapons
- Acoustic lens, a mechanical device used in loudspeaker design to improve the dispersion of high frequencies
Uses associated with shapes
The word lens originally comes from the Latin for a lentil; the first, biconvex, optical lens was given its name because it was lentil-shaped.- Lens (genus), the genus of the lentil plant
- Lens (geometry), a geometric shape formed from two arcs
- Lens (geology), a body of ore or rock that is thick in the middle and thin at the edges
- Lens (groundwater), a layer of fresh water derived from rainfall, overlying saline groundwater
Other uses
- a metaphor for a point of view
- a fictional alien device in E. E. Smith's Lensman series, which gives its bearer telepathic and other abilities
Place names
- Arrondissement
of Lens, in the département of Pas-de-Calais, France
- Lens,
Pas-de-Calais, a commune in that arrondissement
- RC Lens, its football (soccer) club
- Lens,
Pas-de-Calais, a commune in that arrondissement
- Lens, Belgium
- Lens, Valais, Switzerland
Names of people
- Louis Lens, Flemish rose breeder
- Nicholas Lens, Belgian composer
Acronyms
- Laser Engineered Net Shaping, a rapid prototyping technology capable of building fully-dense metal parts
lens in Arabic: عدسة
lens in Czech: Čočka
lens in German: Linse
lens in Spanish: Lente (desambiguación)
lens in Esperanto: Lenso
lens in French: Lentille
lens in Korean: 렌즈 (동음이의)
lens in Croatian: Leća
lens in Dutch: Lens
lens in Norwegian: Linse
lens in Russian: Линза (значения)
lens in Slovak: Šošovka
lens in Thai: เลนส์
lens in Turkish: Lens
lens in Ukrainian: Лінза (значення)
lens in Volapük: Lens