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large calorie

large calorie

3.7
A measure of food energy equal to the heat needed to warm 1 kilogram of water by 1 degree Celsius
  • noun
  • /ˈlɑrdʒ ˈkæləˌri/
  • Specialized
translation icon : kilocaloría
  • One large calorie is the amount of energy needed to heat one kilogram of water by one degree Celsius.

Examples

  • Nutrition labels usually indicate the energy content in large calories or kilocalories.

  • Many foods provide several hundred large calories per serving.

  • Dieticians calculate daily energy needs based on the number of large calories consumed.

  • A large calorie is often used in nutrition.

  • Nutrition labels usually indicate the energy content in large calories or kilocalories.

  • Dieticians calculate daily energy needs based on the number of large calories consumed.

  • One large calorie is the amount of energy needed to heat one kilogram of water by one degree Celsius.

Synonyms

Calorie
vslarge calorie
  • Specialized
124 3.4

A measure of how much energy food gives

is the formal scientific definition behind those nutrition labels
cal
vslarge calorie
  • Specialized
23 3.9

A unit showing how much energy food gives the body

is the full defined term rather than the shortened written form
kilocalorie
vslarge calorie
  • Specialized
4.8

The amount of energy that raises one kilogram of water by one degree Celsius, used to measure food energy

is the defined heat unit used to measure energy in food
kilogram calorie
vslarge calorie
  • Archaic
6.3

A unit of heat to raise one kilogram of water by one degree Celsius, often used for food energy

is the general heat unit description without the pressure detail

Surface Forms

large calorie singular

Morphology

large + Calorie

The phrase is compositionally transparent in ordinary terms: 'large' simply modifies 'calorie', so a B1 learner who knows 'calorie' will infer it denotes a bigger or greater calorie unit used in nutrition. However, the exact technical definition (the kilocalorie thermodynamic definition and the orthographic distinction between 'Calorie' and 'calorie') is specialized and not fully derivable from the constituents, so full understanding may require prior exposure.

Etymology

Large calorie comes from old heat measurements. A calorie was originally a measure of heat for water. Large means the bigger version that warms one kilogram of water by one degree, so it became the unit for 'food energy'.