cross product

American  

noun

Mathematics.

1. a vector perpendicular to two given vectors, u and v, and having magnitude equal to the product of the magnitudes of the two given vectors multiplied by the sine of the angle between the two given vectors, usually represented by u × v.

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cross product British  

noun

1. another name for vector product

2. another name for Cartesian product

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cross product Scientific  

1. See vector product

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Etymology

Origin of cross product

First recorded in 1925–30

Example Sentences

If force F is acting at a distance r from the axis, then torque is equal to the cross product of r and F: τ = r × F.

From Textbooks • Mar. 30, 2016

Notice that each component of the cross product is positive, and therefore this vector gives the outward orientation.

From Textbooks • Mar. 30, 2016

Find unit vector w in the direction of the cross product vector u × v.

From Textbooks • Mar. 30, 2016

Notice that ru = 〈 0, 0, 0 〉 and rv = 〈 0, −sin v, 0 〉 , and the corresponding cross product is zero.

From Textbooks • Mar. 30, 2016

So much for the first cross product of the dog with the jackal.

From The Moral and Intellectual Diversity of Races With Particular Reference to Their Respective Influence in the Civil and Political History of Mankind by Arthur, T. S. (Timothy Shay)