cusp

[ kuhsp ]

/ kʌsp /

noun

a point or pointed end.

Anatomy, Zoology, Botany. a point, projection, or elevation, as on the crown of a tooth.

Also called spinode. Geometry. a point where two branches of a curve meet, end, and are tangent.

Architecture. a decorative device, used especially in Gothic architecture to vary the outlines of intradoses or to form architectural foils, consisting of a pair of curves tangent to the real or imaginary line defining the area decorated and meeting at a point within the area.

Astronomy. a point of a crescent, especially of the moon.

Astrology.

the zodiacal degree that marks the beginning of a house or a sign.
Informal. a person born on the first day of a sign.

a point that marks the beginning of a change: on the cusp of a new era.

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Origin of cusp

First recorded in 1575–85, cusp is from the Latin word cuspis a point

OTHER WORDS FROM cusp

cuspal, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

Example sentences from the Web for cusp

Commencing with the left superior central incisors, three cusps are present with a rudimentary palatine cusp.
Degeneracy|Eugene S. Talbot
Hevelius in 1642 saw the ring more clearly, but figured it as two crescents attached to Saturn by their cusps.
The Sidereal Messenger of Galileo Galilei|Galileo Galilei
Bicuspid, bī-kus′pid, adj. having two cusps: a pre-molar tooth.
Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 1 of 4: A-D)|Various
The circular window is without tracery; it has twelve cusps.
The Cathedral Church of Peterborough|W.D. Sweeting

Above are three circles arranged pyramidally, each containing nine cusps.
The Cathedral Church of York|A. Clutton-Brock

British Dictionary definitions for cusp

cusp

/ (kʌsp) /

noun

any of the small elevations on the grinding or chewing surface of a tooth

any of the triangular flaps of a heart valve

a point or pointed end

Also called: spinode geometry a point at which two arcs of a curve intersect and at which the two tangents are coincident

architect a carving at the meeting place of two arcs

astronomy either of the points of a crescent moon or of a satellite or inferior planet in a similar phase

astrology any division between houses or signs of the zodiac

Word Origin for cusp

C16: from Latin cuspis point, pointed end

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Medical definitions for cusp

cusp

[ kŭsp ]

n.

A pointed or rounded projection on the chewing surface of a tooth.

A triangular fold or flap of a heart valve.

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cusp

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Origin of cusp

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British Dictionary definitions for cusp

noun

Word Origin for cusp

Medical definitions for cusp

n.

MEANINGS

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cusp

noun

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Origin of cusp

OTHER WORDS FROM cusp

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Example sentences from the Web for cusp

British Dictionary definitions for cusp

noun

Word Origin for cusp

Medical definitions for cusp

n.