the cgs unit of force: the force that imparts an acceleration of 1 centimetre per second per second to a mass of 1 gram. 1 dyne is equivalent to 10-5 newton or 7.233 × 10-5 poundal
Word origin
C19: from French, from Greek dunamis power, force
dyne in American English
(daɪn)
noun
the basic unit of force in the CGS system, equal to the amount of force that imparts to a mass of one gram an acceleration of one centimeter persecond per second (0.00001 newton)