What it means
سرمای مطلق (sarmâ-ye motlagh) means absolute zero, the lowest temperature theoretically possible, equal to minus 273.15 degrees Celsius or zero Kelvin, at which point all molecular motion stops. The phrase combines two words of different origins: سرما (sarmâ), meaning cold, is native Persian, while مطلق (motlagh), meaning absolute or unconditional, is borrowed from Arabic. In formal scientific writing you may also see صفر مطلق (sefr-e motlagh), meaning absolute zero more literally. This is a C1 term found mainly in physics textbooks and academic contexts rather than casual conversation.
How to use it
- سرمای مطلق معادل منفی ۲۷۳ درجه سلسیوسه. (Sarmâ-ye motlagh mo’âdel-e manfi 273 daraje-ye selsiyuse.) “Absolute zero equals minus 273 degrees Celsius.”
- در سرمای مطلق حرکت مولکولها کاملاً متوقف میشه. (Dar sarmâ-ye motlagh harakat-e molekulhâ kâmelan motavaqqef mishe.) “At absolute zero the movement of molecules stops completely.”
- رسیدن به سرمای مطلق از نظر عملی غیرممکنه. (Residan be sarmâ-ye motlagh az nazar-e amali gheyr-e momkene.) “Reaching absolute zero is practically impossible.”
- مقیاس کلوین از سرمای مطلق شروع میشه. (Maqyâs-e kelvin az sarmâ-ye motlagh shoru’ mishe.) “The Kelvin scale starts from absolute zero.”
Cultural note
The concept of absolute zero was developed in European thermodynamics in the nineteenth century and entered Persian scientific vocabulary through translation of European physics texts, mainly via French during the Qajar era. In Iranian high school physics, the term سرمای مطلق or صفر مطلق appears in the thermodynamics chapter and is used to explain the Kelvin scale. The compound structure of this phrase, a Persian noun modified by an Arabic adjective, is very typical of how Persian builds scientific and formal vocabulary, blending its native stock with Arabic borrowings seamlessly.