What's the difference between
and
Enter two words to compare and contrast their definitions, origins, and synonyms to better understand how those words are related.

Apprehension vs Tension - What's the difference?

apprehension | tension | Related terms |

As nouns the difference between apprehension and tension

is that apprehension is the physical act of seizing or taking hold of; seizure while tension is condition of being held in a state between two or more forces, which are acting in opposition to each other.

As a verb tension is

to place an object in tension, to pull or place strain on.

apprehension

English

Noun

(en noun)
  • (rare) The physical act of seizing]] or [[take hold, taking hold of; seizure.
  • * 2006 , Phil Senter, "Comparison of Forelimb Function between Deinonychus'' and ''Babiraptor'' (Theropoda: Dromaeosauridea)", ''Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, vol. 26, no. 4 (Dec.), p. 905:
    • The wing would have been a severe obstruction to apprehension of an object on the ground.
  • (legal) The act of seizing or taking by legal process; arrest.
  • * 1855 , , North and South , ch. 37:
    • The warrant had been issued for his apprehension on the charge of rioting.
  • The act of grasping with the intellect; the contemplation of things, without affirming, denying, or passing any judgment; intellection; perception.
  • * 1815 , , "On Life," in A Defence of Poetry and Other Essays (1840 edition):
    • We live on, and in living we lose the apprehension of life.
  • Opinion; conception; sentiment; idea.
  • * 1901 , , Penelope's English Experiences , ch. 8:
    • We think we get a kind of vague apprehension of what London means from the top of a 'bus better than anywhere else.
  • The faculty by which ideas are conceived or by which perceptions are grasped; understanding.
  • * 1854 , , Hard Times , ch. 7:
    • Strangers of limited information and dull apprehension were sometimes observed not to know what a Powler was.
  • Anticipation, mostly of things unfavorable; dread or fear at the prospect of some future ill.
  • * 1846 , , Typee: A Peep at Polynesian Life , ch. 32:
    • Every circumstance which evinced the savage nature of the beings at whose mercy I was, augmented the fearful apprehensions that consumed me.
    (Webster 1913)

    Usage notes

    * Apprehension'' springs from a sense of danger when somewhat remote, but approaching; ''alarm'' arises from danger when announced as near at hand. ''Apprehension'' is less agitated and more persistent; ''alarm is more agitated and transient.

    Synonyms

    * (anticipation of unfavorable things) alarm

    Antonyms

    * inapprehension

    References

    * * Oxford English Dictionary , 2nd ed., 1989.

    tension

    English

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • Condition of being held in a state between two or more forces, which are acting in opposition to each other
  • Psychological state of being tense.
  • (physics, engineering) State of an elastic object which is stretched in a way which increases its length.
  • (physics, engineering) Force transmitted through a rope, string, cable, or similar object (used with prepositions on'', ''in'', or ''of , e.g., "The tension in the cable is 1000 N", to convey that the same magnitude of force applies to objects attached to both ends).
  • (physics, engineering) Voltage. Usually only the terms low tension, high tension, and extra-high tension, and the abbreviations LT, HT, and EHT are used. They are not precisely defined; LT is normally a few volts, HT a few hundreds of volts, and EHT thousands of volts.

    • Related terms

    * tensional * tensile

    Verb

  • To place an object in tension, to pull or place strain on.
    • We tensioned the cable until it snapped.

    Anagrams

    * ----