Joule
The joule (/dʒuːl/JOOL, or/dʒaʊl/JOWL; symbol: J) is the unit of energy in the International System of Units (SI).1 In terms of SI base units, one joule corresponds to one kilogram - metre squared per second squared (1 J = 1 kg⋅m ⋅s). One joule is equal to the amount of work done when a force of one newton displaces a body through a distance of one metre in the direction of that force. It is also the energy dissipated as heat when an electric current of one ampere passes through a resistance of one ohm for one second. It is named after the English physicist James Prescott Joule (1818–1889).234
Printed 2026-06-28.
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Footnotes
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International Bureau of Weights and Measures (2006), The International System of Units (SI) (PDF) (8th ed.), p. 120, ISBN 92-822-2213-6, archived (PDF) from the original on 4 June 2021, retrieved 16 December 2021 ↩
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American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Online Edition (2009). Houghton Mifflin Co., hosted by Yahoo! Education. ↩
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The American Heritage Dictionary, Second College Edition (1985). Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., p. 691. ↩
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McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Physics, Fifth Edition (1997). McGraw-Hill, Inc., p. 224. ↩