Definition of "vacuum"

vacuum

/ˈvæ.kjuːm/

noun
plural vacuums or (rare, formal) vacua
1. A region of space that contains no matter.
  Quotations
  The Wards are open-topped, with skyscrapers rising from the superstructure. Towers are sealed against vacuum, as the breathable atmosphere envelope is only maintained to a height of about seven meters. The atmosphere is contained by the centrifugal force of rotation and a "membrane" of dense, colorless sulphur hexafluoride gas, held in place by carefully managed mass effect fields.
  2008, BioWare, Mass Effect (Science Fiction), Redwood City: Electronic Arts, PC, scene: Citadel Station: Wards Codex entry
2. The condition of rarefaction, or reduction of pressure below that of the atmosphere, in a vessel, such as the condenser of a steam engine, which is nearly exhausted of air or steam, etc.
3. (colloquial, only pluralized as "vacuums") Ellipsis of vacuum cleaner.
4. (physics) A spacetime having tensors of zero magnitude.
5. An emptiness in life created by a loss of a person who was close, or of an occupation.
  Quotations
  Henrietta soon found a terrible vacuum left, by the letters in which she used to pour forth every feeling and thought to her uncle.
  1837, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], Ethel Churchill: Or, The Two Brides. […], volume III, London: Henry Colburn, […], pages 82–83
6. An exercise in which one draws their abdomen towards the spine.
  Quotations
  Abs show up in a most-muscular shot, a vacuum shot, the hands-behind-head compulsory ab shot, twisting poses, and so on.
  1985, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Encyclopedia of Modern Bodybuilding, New York, N.Y.: Simon & Schuster, page 508
  Right I'm off to practice my vacuum - suck in those stomachs now!
  1997 January 6, John, “I'm 14; How do I start bodybuilding?”, in misc.fitness.weights‎ (Usenet)
  When I do the 'gut vacuum' exercise the abdominal wall seems to return to normal size, as far as I can tell under the flab.
  2010 January 7, Silent Stone, “Want to start, have a few questions for now.”, in misc.fitness.weights‎ (Usenet)
  Blessed with round muscle bellies and a phenomenal structure, he also performed a vacuum pose on stage.
  2022 October 10, Aaromal Maanas, “2022 Tsunami Nutrition Pro Results and Recap”, in Sportskeeda‎, archived from the original on 2022-10-23
verb
third-person singular simple present vacuums, present participle vacuuming, simple past and past participle vacuumed
1. (transitive) To clean (something) with a vacuum cleaner.
  Quotations
  “Who in the world cleans an attic? That's like vacuuming a shed.”
  2016, Janice M. Whiteaker, Run
2. (intransitive) To use a vacuum cleaner.
3. (transitive, databases) To optimise a database or database table by physically removing deleted tuples.

Definition of "vacuum"

vacuum

noun

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verb

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