arc

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Email
(ärk) pronunciation
n.
  1. Something shaped like a curve or arch: the vivid arc of a rainbow.
  2. Mathematics. A segment of a circle.
  3. An electric arc.
  4. Astronomy. The apparent path of a celestial body as it rises above and falls below the horizon.
intr.v., arced (ärkt), arc·ing (är'kĭng), arcs.
  1. To form an arc.
  2. To move or seem to move in a curved path: the stars that arc across the sky.

[Middle English ark, from Old French arc, from Latin arcus.]


verb

    To swerve from a straight line: angle, arch, bend, bow, crook, curve, round, turn. See straight/bent.


n

Definition: curve
Antonyms: straight line


1. The luminous column of gas in an arc discharge; caused by the flow of electric current between separated electrodes in a gas.
2. See carbon-arc spotlight.
3. Any part of the circumference of a circle.
4. An angular measure.


in electricity
in geometry

arc, in electricity, highly luminous and intensely hot discharge of electricity between two electrodes. The arc was discovered early in the 19th cent. by the English scientist Sir Humphry Davy, who so named it because of its shape. An arc is characterized by a high current, low voltage, and indefinite duration. It is usually started when two electrodes carrying an electric current are drawn apart. At the instant the electrodes are parted, strong electric forces draw electrons from one electrode to the other, initiating the arc. The discharge consists of a current composed of these electrons and charged gas particles, called ions, that form between the electrodes. The first practical electric light, the arc lamp, made use of the arc formed between two carbon rods (see lighting). Today the use of the arc lamp is limited to special purposes, e.g., in searchlights and in research applications. The principle of the electric arc is employed in welding (as in the hydrogen arc, where hydrogen is introduced between tungsten electrodes) and also in generating heat in the electric furnace. A spark, like an arc, is a discharge of electricity between two points, but it has a high voltage and a short duration. Lightning is an example of a spark.

arc, in geometry, a curved line or any part of it; in particular, a portion of the circumference of a circle. The length s of an arc of a circle of radius r and subtending a central angle of θ radians is s=rθ; if θ is measured in degrees, then the arc is given by s=2πrθ/360.


Discharge of electricity through a gas such as lightning discharging through the atmosphere.


Top
pronunciation

IN BRIEF: Verb- Following or describing a curving course.

pronunciation They saw two rainbows arcing over a body of water.

LearnThatWord.com is a free vocabulary and spelling program where you only pay for results!

A part of the circumference of a circle, or a regularly curved line.

  • binauricular a. — the arc across the top of the head from one auricular point to the other.
  • reflex a. — the circuit traveled by impulses producing a reflex action: from the receptor organ, through the afferent nerve, nerve center, efferent nerve, to the effector organ.

n

The abbreviation for AIDS-related complex. See also acquired immunodeficiency syndrome.

Random House Word Menu:

categories related to 'arc'

Top
Random House Word Menu by Stephen Glazier
For a list of words related to arc, see:

  See crossword solutions for the clue Arc.

Arc may refer to:

Contents

Mathematics

Optics

  • 120° parhelion, relatively rare halo, an optical phenomenon occasionally appearing along with very bright sun dogs
  • Infralateral arc, a rare halo, an optical phenomenon appearing similar to a rainbow under a white parhelic circle
  • Lower tangent arc, rarely observable halo, an optical phenomenon appearing under and tangent to a 22° halo centred around the sun
  • Parry arc, a rare halo, an optical phenomenon which occasionally appears over a 22° halo together with an upper tangent arc
  • Subhelic arc, a rare halo that curves upwards from the horizon and touches the tricker arc above the anthelic point
  • Supralateral arc, a rare halo, an optical phenomenon often confused with the indeed infrequently appearing 46° halo
  • Upper tangent arc, halo, an atmospheric optical phenomenon which appears over and tangent to the 22° halo centred around the sun

Engineering

  • Arc chute, a protective device in an electrical circuit breaker
  • Arc lamp, a device that produces light by an electric arc
  • Arc welding, a method of welding that uses an electric arc to melt the metals together
  • Electric arc or voltaic arc, an ongoing plasma discharge (an electric current through a gas), producing light and heat
  • Arc or arch, a bowed or curved structure capable of spanning a space while supporting significant weight

Places

  • Arc (Savoie), a river of eastern France, tributary of the Isère river
  • Arc (Provence), a river of southern France, flowing into the Étang de Berre
  • Les Arcs, a ski resort in the French Alps
  • Volcanic arc, a chain of volcanoes positioned in an arc shape as seen from above
  • Island arc, a type of archipelago composed of a chain of volcanoes which alignment is arc-shaped, and which are situated parallel and close to a boundary between two converging tectonic plates

Biology

  • Arc (protein), a name of product of an immediate early gene, also called Arg3.1

Modern culture

Computing and gaming

Other

See also


Top

Dansk (Danish)
n. - bue, lysbue
v. intr. - danne bue, danne lysbue

1.
n. - det jordvidenskabelige forskningsråd

2.
abbr. - ARC, Amerikansk røde kors

Nederlands (Dutch)
(cirkel)boog, vonk, een boog vormen, Aids-gerelateerd complex, Amerikaans Rode Kruis, raad voor de ontwikkeling van landbouw,

Français (French)
n. - (Géom) arc, (Élec) arc, (Astron) arc, en arc
v. intr. - décrire un arc de cercle, (Élec) former un arc (électrique)

abbr. - syndromes associés au SIDA, Croix-rouge américaine

Deutsch (German)
n. - Landwirtschaftlicher Forschungsrat, Bogen, (electr.) Lichtbogen
v. - einen Bogen bilden

1.
n. - (Pol) Regenbogen Fraktion

2.
abbr. - Landwirtschaftlicher Forschungsrat, (Abk) Prä-Aids-Symtomatik

Ελληνική (Greek)
abbr. - σύνδρομο συναφές με το 'Ειτζ
n. - (μαθημ., ηλεκτρ.) τόξο
v. - διαγράφω τόξο, (ηλεκτρ.) "γεφυρώνω" με βολταϊκό (τόξο)
adj. - τοξωτός

Italiano (Italian)
croce rossa americana, ente di ricerca per l'agricoltura, arco, formare un arco, ad arco

Português (Portuguese)
n. - arco (m) (Geom.) (Astron.), arco (m) voltaico (Eletr.)
v. - formar um arco, formar um arco voltaico (Eletr.)
abbr. - Cruz (f) Vermelha Americana, controle (m) remoto automático (Téc.), célula (f) reativa a antígenos (Biol.)

Русский (Russian)
Американский Красный Крест, Совет по Исследованию сельского хозяйства, арка, свод, образовывать дугу, имеющий форму арки

Español (Spanish)
n. - arco, en forma de arco
v. intr. - formar un arco, arquearse, doblarse

1.
n. - complejo relacionado al SIDA

2.
abbr. - Cruz Roja Norteamericana, complejo relacionado al SIDA

Svenska (Swedish)
abbr. - lantbruksforskningsråd
n. - båge, cirkelbåge, ljusbåge
v. - bilda båge
adj. - båg-

中文(简体)(Chinese (Simplified))
1. 农业研究委员会, 美国红十字会

2. 农业研究委员会, 美国红十字会

弧, 弓形, 弧形, 呈弧形, 循弧线行进, 形成电弧

中文(繁體)(Chinese (Traditional))
1.
n. - 農業研究委員會, 美國紅十字會

2.
abbr. - 農業研究委員會, 美國紅十字會

n. - 弧, 弓形, 弧形
v. intr. - 呈弧形, 循弧線行進, 形成電弧

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 원호, 아크, 궁형
v. intr. - 전호를 이루다

1.
n. - 미국 적십자사, 에이즈 관련 기구

2.
abbr. - 에이즈 관련 기구, 미국 적십자사 (American Red Cross)

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 弧, 弧形, アーク
v. - 弧状に動く, アークをなす
adj. - 弧の

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(اختصار) قوس, (الاسم) قهس (فعل) قوسي (صفه) جز من دائره أو خط منحني, كل ما هو قوسي الشكل‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮קשת, חלק ממעגל‬
v. intr. - ‮היווה קשת‬
n. - ‮מועצת המחקר החקלאי (בריטניה)‬
abbr. - ‮סיבוך הקשור באיידס, הצלב האדום האמריקאי‬


Post a question - any question - to the WikiAnswers community:

Copyrights:

Mentioned in

arc time (metallurgy)