pion

noun

pi·​on ˈpī-ˌän How to pronounce pion (audio)
: a meson that is a combination of up and down quarks and antiquarks, that may be positive, negative, or neutral, and that has a mass about 270 times that of the electron
pionic adjective

Examples of pion in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The images showed how quarks carrying different fractions of the pion’s momentum are distributed across the particle. Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 12 June 2026 Above some critical energy threshold, interactions between those photons and a cosmic ray will be energetic enough that additional particles, like pions, will spontaneously be created. Big Think, 30 Jan. 2026 They are created when protons and neutrons collide, which generates particles known as pions that then decay into muons. IEEE Spectrum, 3 Dec. 2024 This meddling is what allows the kaon to produce a pion and two neutrinos, the process NA62 seeks. Clara Moskowitz, Scientific American, 1 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

contraction of pi-meson

First Known Use

1950, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of pion was in 1950

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Pion.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pion. Accessed 5 Jul. 2026.

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