— inertial , adj.
/in err"sheuh, i nerr"-/ , n.
1. inertness, esp. with regard to effort, motion, action, and the like; inactivity; sluggishness.
2. Physics.
a. the property of matter by which it retains its state of rest or its velocity along a straight line so long as it is not acted upon by an external force.
b. an analogous property of a force: electric inertia.
3. Med. lack of activity, esp. as applied to a uterus during childbirth when its contractions have decreased or stopped.
[ 1705-15; ]
Syn. 1. torpor, inaction, laziness.