chaos

nouncommon in dialogue

United Kingdom//ˈkeɪɒs//
United States//ˈkeɪˌɑs//
Canada//ˈkeɪɒs//

The unordered state of matter in classical accounts of cosmogony.

noun

1
The unordered state of matter in classical accounts of cosmogony.
2
Any state of disorder; a confused or amorphous mixture or conglomeration.
to descend into chaos
After the earthquake, the local hospital was in chaos
or out of these chaoses order may be made, out of this ferment a clear wine of life. There are chaoses that have gone too far for retrieval
3
A behavior of iterative nonlinear systems in which arbitrarily small variations in initial conditions become magnified over time.
4
One of the two metaphysical forces of the world in some fantasy settings, as opposed to law.
5
obsoleteA vast chasm or abyss.
6
obsoleteA given medium; a space in which something exists or lives; an environment.
What is in the centre of the earth, or is it pure element only, as Ariſtotle decrees inhabited as Paracelſus thinks with creatures, whoſe Chaos is the earth with Fairies, as the woods and waters according to him, are with Nymphes or as the ayre with ſpirits.

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰeh₂-der. Ancient Greek χαῦνος (khaûnos) Ancient Greek χάος (kháos)lbor. English chaos Learned borrowing from Ancient Greek χάος (kháos, “vast chasm, void”). Doublet of gas, which was borrowed through Dutch. Displaced native Old English dwolma. In Early Modern English, used in the sense of the original Greek word. In the meaning “primordial matter” from the 16th century. Figurative usage in the sense “confusion, disorder” from the 17th century. The technical sense in mathematics and science dates from the 1960s.

Forms

plural: chaoses

Chant · A surname from French.chanting · Singing, especially as a chant is sung.Chao · A surname from Chinese.

chaos · The unordered state of matter in classical accounts of cosmogony.

Chaos · In Greek mythology, the primordial state of disorder that…chaotic · Filled with chaos.chap · A man, a fellow.

The neighbouring pages — Alphabetical order follows the rules of the language, not byte values: an accent decides only between two otherwise identical words, and Spanish files Ñ as a letter of its own.