Geometry. any unbroken part of the circumference of a circle or other curved line.
Also called electric arc. Electricity. a luminous bridge formed in a gap between two electrodes.
Astronomy. the part of a circle representing the apparent course of a heavenly body.
anything bow-shaped.
to form an electric arc.
to move in a curve suggestive of an arc.
something curved in shape
part of an unbroken curved line
a luminous discharge that occurs when an electric current flows between two electrodes or any other two surfaces separated by a small gap and a high potential difference
astronomy a circular section of the apparent path of a celestial body
maths a section of a curve, graph, or geometric figure
1350–1400; Middle English ark < Latin arcus bow, arch, curve
An arc is a curve. You can describe the bend of a rainbow as an arc. In math, an arc is one section of a circle, but in life you can use the word to mean any curved shape, like the arc of a ballerina's arm or the graceful arc of a flowering vine over a trellis. In the 14th century, arc first meant the movement of the sun in the sky, from the Old French arc, "bow or arch," and the Latin root arcus, also "bow or arch."
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“The reported fourth quarter indicated some stabilization in the business, but continued unanswered questions about the arc of the company’s recovery,” Sarah Henry, portfolio manager at Logan Capital Management, said over email.
From MarketWatch • Jul. 1, 2026
"Your performance across the whole arc of the game doesn't matter as much as having a signature moment that'll play well, that'll reverberate in the viral confines of social media," Serazio said.
From BBC • Jun. 30, 2026
Four years ago in Qatar, he completed his career arc by winning the competition for the first time.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 22, 2026
This gripping meditation on heartbreak comprises the vicar’s final emotional arc.
From Salon • Jun. 16, 2026
If sugar was sugar was sugar—if the metabolism of lactose was no different from that of glucose—then one might have expected bacteria fed on the glucose/lactose mix to exhibit the same smooth arc of growth.
From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
