caustic surface

American

noun

Optics.

the surface to which all light rays emanating from a single point and reflected by a curved surface, as a concave mirror, are tangent.

Etymology

Origin of caustic surface

First recorded in 1865–70

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

caustic surface

The word she’s looking for is misanthrope, but of course there is a core of tenderness and generosity underneath Elle’s caustic surface.

From New York Times ● Aug. 19, 2015

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023