abscissa
(in plane Cartesian coordinates) the x-coordinate of a point: its distance from the y-axis measured parallel to the x-axis.
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Origin of abscissa
1- Compare ordinate.
Words Nearby abscissa
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use abscissa in a sentence
The corresponding value of y determines a point P in accordance with the rule that x is the abscissa and y the ordinate of P.
To any value of x there corresponds a point N on the axis of x, in accordance with the rule that x is the abscissa of N.
Curves have been prepared having pressure as an abscissa and elasticity as ordinate.
Paint Technology and Tests | Henry A. GardnerThe curve then crosses the abscissa upwards, and the positive curvature reaches a maximum.
Life Movements in Plants, Volume II, 1919 | Sir Jagadis Chunder Boseabscissa represents duration of exposure and quantity of incident light.
Life Movements in Plants, Volume II, 1919 | Sir Jagadis Chunder Bose
British Dictionary definitions for abscissa
/ (æbˈsɪsə) /
the horizontal or x -coordinate of a point in a two-dimensional system of Cartesian coordinates. It is the distance from the y -axis measured parallel to the x -axis: Compare ordinate
Origin of abscissa
1Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for abscissa
[ ăb-sĭs′ə ]
The distance of a point from the y-axis on a graph in the Cartesian coordinate system. It is measured parallel to the x-axis. For example, a point having coordinates (2,3) has 2 as its abscissa. Compare ordinate.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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