Shear stress (or shear force)	Shear stress is the tangential force applied by a flowing fluid on the surface of an object
Catch bond/Slip bond	A catch bond is a bond that becomes stronger (increased lifetime) when a pulling force is applied to it. By contrast, a slip bond becomes weaker (decreased lifetime) with applied force
Mechanosensing	Mechanosensing is the process through which cells or proteins detect and respond to variations of forces and mechanical properties of their environment
Mechanosensor	A mechanosensor is a molecule/protein that mediates mechanosensing
Passive mechanosensing	During passive mechanosensing, a mechanosensor detects applied mechanical stimuli (without applying force or tension itself)
Active touch sensing	Active touch sensing is the process through which cells actively probe the mechanical properties of their environment (for instance substrate stiffness)
Mechanotransduction	Mechanotransduction is the process during which mechanosensors translate mechanical inputs into intracellular signaling events
Stiffness (or elastic modulus)	Stiffness is a measure of the ability of an object or a substance to resist deformation upon an applied force
Durotaxis	Migrating cells can sense stiffness of the substrate they migrate in or on, typically via active touch sensing. Durotaxis is the ability of cells to move up rigidity gradients.