curvature

American  

[kur-vuh-cher, -choor] / ˈkɜr və tʃər, -ˌtʃʊər /

noun

1. the act of curving or the state of being curved.

2. a curved condition, often abnormal.

   curvature of the spine.

3. the degree of curving of a line or surface.

4. Geometry.

   1. (at a point on a curve) the derivative of the inclination of the tangent with respect to arc length.

   2. the absolute value of this derivative.

5. something curved.

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curvature British  

/ ˈkɜːvətʃə /

noun

1. something curved or a curved part of a thing

2. any normal or abnormal curving of a bodily part

   curvature of the spine

3. geometry the change in inclination of a tangent to a curve over unit length of arc. For a circle or sphere it is the reciprocal of the radius See also radius of curvature centre of curvature

4. the act of curving or the state or degree of being curved or bent

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Etymology

Origin of curvature

1375–1425; late Middle English < Latin curvātūra, equivalent to curvāt ( us ) past participle of curvāre to bend, curve + -ūra -ure. See -ate ¹

Explanation

A rounded, bent, or arched shape in something is a curvature. When there's a wide expanse of open ocean, you can see the slight curvature of the earth right where it meets the horizon. A curvature is the shape of something that's curved — and both words stem from the Latin curvare, "to bend." In math, the term curvature has several specific meanings depending on its context, but it basically comes down to a curving or bending away from a straight line. The curvature of your movie theater seat might make it particularly comfortable, while the curvature of your spine as you work on your computer may give you a backache later.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

curvature

Traveling across interstellar distances introduces many additional complications, including the curvature of spacetime, which the paper also simplifies out.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 2, 2026

"They need to have armrests and a backrest, there needs to be curvature to the seat, I like a bench to be made out of wood," explained Wilmot.

From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026

The findings give researchers a way to investigate whether deliberately controlling the curvature of graphene wrinkles could be used to adjust the material's electrical properties.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 17, 2026

Gibby described the police conclusion as "unbelievable", saying Griff was "very frail" and had a curvature of the spine, which affected his hand and made it "almost claw-like".

From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026

General relativity predicts that heavy objects that are moving will cause the emission of gravitational waves, ripples in the curvature of space that travel at the speed of light.

From "A Brief History of Time: And Other Essays" by Stephen Hawking