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secant

 
secant
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secant
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('kănt', -kənt) pronunciation
n. (Abbr. sec)
    1. A straight line intersecting a curve at two or more points.
    2. The straight line drawn from the center through one end of a circular arc and intersecting the tangent to the other end of the arc.
    3. The ratio of the length of this line to the length of the radius of the circle.
  1. The reciprocal of the cosine of an angle in a right triangle.

[From Latin secāns, secant-, present participle of secāre, to cut.]


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secant, in mathematics.

1 In geometry, a secant is a straight line cutting a curve or surface. If it intersects the curve in two different points, as in the secant of a circle, the segment of the secant between the points is called a chord. The limiting position of a secant, if such a limit exists, is called the tangent to the curve or surface at that point.

2 A trigonometric function. See trigonometry.


  1. abbr. and symbol: sec; the reciprocal of the cosine of an angle.
  2. a straight line cutting a curve at two or more points.

Previous:sec., sec-, sec
Next:seco-, seco-carotenoid, seco-steroid
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Secant is a term in mathematics derived from the Latin secare ("to cut"). It may refer to:


Translations:

Secant

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Dansk (Danish)
n. - sekant, skæringslinje

Nederlands (Dutch)
snijdend, snijlijn, secans (wiskunde)

Français (French)
n. - (Math) sécante

Deutsch (German)
n. - Sekante, Schnittlinie

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - (μαθημ.) τέμνουσα
adj. - (μαθημ.) τέμνων

Italiano (Italian)
secante

Português (Portuguese)
n. - secante (m) (Geom.)
adj. - secante

Русский (Russian)
секущая, секанс, секущий, пересекающий

Español (Spanish)
n. - secante

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - sekant
adj. - skärande

中文(简体)(Chinese (Simplified))
割线, 正切

中文(繁體)(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 割線, 正切

한국어 (Korean)
n. - (기하) 할선, (삼각법) 시컨트

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - セカント, 割線
adj. - 切る, 交差する

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) خط يقطع قوسا (صفه) ألقاطع‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮סקנס - היחס בין היתר לצלע הקצרה ביותר במשולש ישר-זווית, קו חותך (מתמטיקה)‬


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Related topics:
arc secant
sec (abbreviation)
sech (abbreviation)

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American Heritage Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
Columbia Encyclopedia. The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition Copyright © 2012, Columbia University Press. Licensed from Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. www.cc.columbia.edu/cu/cup/ Read more
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