A tiny subatomic particle that combines with other quarks to form protons and neutrons, the building blocks of atoms.
Coined in 1964 by physicist Murray Gell-Mann from James Joyce's nonsense word 'quark' in 'Finnegans Wake,' where it meant a strange or peculiar thing, perfectly fitting a mysterious particle.
Quarks come in six 'flavors' called up, down, strange, charm, top, and bottom—physicists deliberately named them this way as a playful way to handle incomprehensibly abstract concepts, showing science isn't always serious nomenclature!
Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.