Phrase guide

Weaire-Phelan structure

noun · 1 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

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Pronunciation

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1

noun

Meaning 1

A three-dimensional structure representing an idealized foam of equal-sized bubbles, with two different shapes.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: geometry, mathematics, sciences

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Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

Named after Denis Weaire and Robert Phelan, who in 1993 found that this structure was a better solution to the Kelvin problem of tiling space by equal-volume cells of minimum surface area than the previous best-known solution, the Kelvin structure.