elliptical

[ih-lip-ti-kuh l]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR elliptical ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective Also el·lip·tic.

pertaining to or having the form of an ellipse.

pertaining to or marked by grammatical ellipsis.

(of speech or writing) expressed with extreme or excessive economy; relieved of irrelevant matter: to converse in elliptical sentences.

(of a style of speaking or writing) tending to be ambiguous, cryptic, or obscure: an elliptical prose that is difficult to translate.

noun

Astronomy. elliptical galaxy.

Origin of elliptical

1650–60; < Greek elleiptik(ós) defective (see ellipsis, -tic) + -al¹

Related formsel·lip·ti·cal·ness, nounnon·el·lip·tic, adjectivenon·el·lip·ti·cal, adjectivenon·el·lip·ti·cal·ly, adverbo·ver·el·lip·ti·cal, adjectiveo·ver·el·lip·ti·cal·ly, adverbsub·el·lip·tic, adjectivesub·el·lip·ti·cal, adjectiveun·el·lip·ti·cal, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for elliptic

lumpy, asymmetrical, elliptical, jagged, craggy, unbalanced, bent, eccentric, wobbly, variable, rough, aberrant, ovoid, oblong, amorphous, broken, cockeyed, crooked, devious, disproportionate

Examples from the Web for elliptic

Historical Examples of elliptic

Genius is synthetic, elliptic, sudden, but always clear and sure.
The Goat-gland Transplantation
Sydney B. Flower
According to Pausanias, it was made of cedar-wood, and elliptic in shape.
Museum of Antiquity
L. W. Yaggy
From what does the elliptic motion in the solar system arise?
The Story of the Heavens
Robert Stawell Ball
This elliptic orbit is mainly determined by the attraction of the sun.
The Story of the Heavens
Robert Stawell Ball
These are the ends of elliptic cylinders in connection with the vaulting.
Bell's Cathedrals: The Cathedral Church of St. Paul
Arthur Dimock

British Dictionary definitions for elliptic

elliptical

adjective

relating to or having the shape of an ellipse

relating to or resulting from ellipsis

(of speech, literary style, etc)

very condensed or concise, often so as to be obscure or ambiguous
circumlocutory or long-winded

Also (for senses 1, 2): elliptic

Derived Formselliptically, adverbellipticalness, noun

usage

The use of elliptical to mean circumlocutory should be avoided as it may be interpreted wrongly as meaning condensed or concise

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

Word Origin and History for elliptic

adj.

1726, from Greek elleiptikos "pertaining to an ellipse," from elleipein (see ellipsis).

elliptical

adj.

1650s, "elliptic in shape;" see elliptic + -al (1). Grammatical sense of "missing essential words or phrases" is recorded from 1778 (see ellipsis). Related: Elliptically.