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impermeability

impermeability

8.3
The quality of not letting water or air pass through
  • noun
  • /ɪmˌpɜrmiˈæləti/
  • Specialized
translation icon : impermeabilidad
  • How can one be confident of the continued impermeability of a rock layer if it is subjected to massive differential subsidence?
  • autonomy and impermeability
  • impermeability of states

Examples

  • State autonomy and impermeability protect the state's right to pursue its own national interest, maintain its own values, and determine the condition of its own society and the life and destiny of its inhabitants.

    Academic text (1990)
  • Indeed, the impermeability of borders for laborers accounts for much of what we call "globalization."

    Academic text (2008)
  • The impermeability and constant temperature of the tufa have kept the colors alive over the centuries.

    Academic text (2001)
  • External scrutiny and other "interventions" to assure the proper implementation of such programs are resisted in the name of state autonomy and impermeability.

    Academic text (1990)
  • A computer security expert, Schneier has recanted his faith in the impermeability of cryptographic algorithms.

    Academic text (2005)
  • Moreover, state values -- the independence and autonomy of the state, the inviolability of its territory, and the impermeability of its society -- and cooperative welfare programs that benefit the state might also benefit its people.

    Academic text (1990)
  • Because state values of autonomy and impermeability are deeply embedded, even states that have adhered to human rights law have resisted external monitoring of their compliance and have been reluctant to monitor others.

    Academic text (1990)
  • The autonomy and impermeability of states are protected and promoted by law prohibiting the use or threat of force against the state's political independence and territorial integrity, and by norms against intervention generally.

    Academic text (1990)
  • An international system of states is likely to be with us for a long time, and state values—independence, autonomy, impermeability—are likely to remain dominant values of the system.

    Academic text (1990)
  • One of graphene's most remarkable properties is its impermeability to gases and liquids.

Synonyms

imperviousness
vsimpermeability
1 8.7

A state of not allowing water, light, or ideas to pass through

is specific to preventing liquids and gases, not all passing things
airtightness
vsimpermeability
1 4.6

The state of not letting air move in or out

includes liquids as well as gases, not only air
impenetrability
vsimpermeability
1 9.9

Being impossible to go through, like thick walls or heavy fog

is about stopping liquids and gases, not about being hard to understand
impermeableness
vsimpermeability
  • Specialized
9.8

The quality of not letting water pass through something

is the more common noun form used in standard writing
watertightness
vsimpermeability
6.1

How well something stops water from getting in or out

covers gases as well as liquids, not only water
impenetrableness
vsimpermeability
9.9

A quality of being impossible to get through or understand

is used for stopping liquids and gases, not for being hard to understand

Antonyms

permeability
  • Specialized
3 7.4

How easily liquid or gas passes through a material like soil

How Impermeable

airtightness
1 4.6
impermeability
  • Specialized
8.3
permeability
  • Specialized
3 7.4
porosity
  • Specialized
1 7.7

Surface Forms

Morphology

impermeability = impermeable (transparent) = im + permeable + ity

The noun is transparently formed from the adjective 'impermeable' by adding the suffix '-ity'.

Etymology

Impermeability comes from the prefix im- meaning 'not' and permeable, from permeate which means 'to pass through'. So impermeability is the quality of not letting liquids or gases pass through, like a raincoat that keeps water out.