magnitude

マグニチュード

地震が放出するエネルギーの大きさを示す数。

やさしい英語で： A number showing how much energy an earthquake releases.

• The earthquake had a magnitude of five.
• Scientists recorded several quakes of similar magnitude.
• A magnitude seven earthquake struck the coast.

よく使う表現： earthquake magnitude, magnitude six, magnitude of something

規模、大きさ、重要性

物事がどれほど大きいか、重大か、重要かということ。

やさしい英語で： How large, serious, or important something is.

• I understood the magnitude of the task.
• Nobody expected a disaster of this magnitude.
• The changes differed greatly in magnitude.

使い方： the magnitude of something (We underestimated the magnitude of the problem.)

類義語： size, scale, extent, importance

よく使う表現： magnitude of something, enormous magnitude, order of magnitude

大きさ、絶対値

量や測定値がどれほど大きいかを示す数。

やさしい英語で： A number that expresses how large an amount or a measured value is.

• The two values have equal magnitude.
• This number represents the magnitude of the force.
• A vector has both magnitude and direction.

使い方： the magnitude of something (Calculate the magnitude of the force.)

類義語： size, absolute value

よく使う表現： vector magnitude, magnitude of something, calculate the magnitude

視等級

星の見かけの明るさを示す数で、小さい数ほど明るい。

やさしい英語で： A number showing how bright a star looks; lower numbers mean brighter stars.

• The star has an apparent magnitude of six.
• Astronomers measured the magnitude of the newly discovered star.
• Stars of this magnitude are difficult to see without a telescope.

類義語： apparent magnitude

よく使う表現： apparent magnitude, stellar magnitude, fifth magnitude