decoherence
/diːkəʊˈhɪəɹəns/noun
decoherence is spelled D-E-C-O-H-E-R-E-N-C-E: 11 letters. It appears about once in every 12 million words in written English, the 103,949th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, decoherence means “Loss of quantum coherence (phase relation between the quantum states of particles) in a physical system as it interacts with its environment” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of decoherence is decoherences.
How many letters and syllables are in decoherence?
| Letters | 11: D-E-C-O-H-E-R-E-N-C-E |
|---|---|
| In writing | about once in every 12 million words; the 103,949th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is decoherence?
Decoherence appears about once in every 12 million words in written English, the 103,949th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce decoherence?
- UK /diːkəʊˈhɪəɹəns/
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What rhymes with decoherence?
2 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as decoherence from its last stressed vowel (/ɪəɹəns/, British pronunciation):
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of decoherence
- decoherences plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does decoherence mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
Loss of quantum coherence (phase relation between the quantum states of particles) in a physical system as it interacts with its environment.
- 2
datedThe normal condition of sensitiveness in a coherer; reversion to such condition.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Decoherence in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense loss of quantum coherence:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | décohérence |
| German | Dekohärenz |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does decoherence come from?
First attested 1902 (OED) in the electrical engineering sense "the resetting of a coherer." From decohere (also 1902) + -ence, representing the verbal noun (compare decohesion, decoherency). The quantum mechanics concept was introduced in 1970 by German physicist H. Dieter Zeh, writing in the journal Foundations of Physics.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).