Real Dictionary

surface tension in American English
a property of liquids in which the exposed surface tends to contract to the smallest possible area because of unequal molecular cohesive forces near the surface: measured by the force per unit of length
the elasticlike force existing in the surface of a body, esp. a liquid, tending to minimize the area of the surface, caused by asymmetries in the intermolecular forces between surface molecules

surface tension in British English
noun: a property of liquids caused by intermolecular forces near the surface leading to the apparent presence of a surface film and to capillarity, etc

surface tension in Chemical Engineering
noun: Surface tension is the force that makes a surface area tend to become smaller to make its surface energy as low as possible.