valence

Meaning

Noun

• An extract; a preparation, now especially one effective against a certain number of strains of a pathogen.
• The combining capacity of an atom, radical or functional group determined by the number of electrons that it will lose, gain, or share when it combines with other atoms etc.
• The number of binding sites of a molecule, such as an antibody or antigen.
• The number of arguments that a verb can have, including its subject, ranging from zero (for the likes of "It rains") to three (for the likes of "Bob gives Alice a flower") or, less commonly, four.
• A one-dimensional value assigned to an object, situation, or state, that can usually be positive or negative.
• Value.
• Alternate spelling of valance

Origin

• In the sense “extract, preparation”, from Latin valentia ("strength, capacity") (1425). The now-current sense of “combining capacity (of an atom)” is from German Valenz (1884), from the same Latin word. The linguistic definition was formed in analogy to its use in chemistry. The sense “one-dimensional value” used in psychology is also from German Valenz (1935).