Dictionary.com

geodesic

[ jee-uh-des-ik, -dee-sik ]
/ ˌdʒi əˈdɛs ɪk, -ˈdi sɪk /

adjective

Also ge·o·des·i·cal. pertaining to the geometry of curved surfaces, in whichgeodesic lines take the place of the straight lines of plane geometry.

noun

geodesic line.

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Origin of geodesic

From the French word géodésique, dating back to 1815–25. See geodesy, -ic

Words nearby geodesic

geocode, geocorona, geod., geode, geodemographics, geodesic, geodesic dome, geodesic line, geodesy, geodetic, geodetic latitude
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for geodesic

British Dictionary definitions for geodesic

geodesic
/ (ˌdʒiːəʊˈdɛsɪk, -ˈdiː-) /

adjective

Also: geodetic, geodesical relating to or involving the geometry of curved surfaces

noun

Also called: geodesic line the shortest line between two points on a curved or plane surface
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

Scientific definitions for geodesic

geodesic
[ jē′ə-dĕs′ĭk, -dē′sĭk ]

Noun

A curve that locally minimizes the distance between two points on any mathematically defined space, such as a curved manifold. Equivalently, it is a path of minimal curvature. In noncurved three-dimensional space, the geodesic is a straight line. In General Relativity, the trajectory of a body with negligible mass on which only gravitational forces are acting (i.e. a free falling body) is a geodesic in (curved) 4-dimensional space-time.

Adjective

Of or relating to the branch of geometry that deals with geodesics.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.