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inverse function

American  

noun

Mathematics.
  1. the function that replaces another function when the dependent and independent variables of the first function are interchanged for an appropriate set of values of the dependent variable. In y = sin x and x = arc sin y, the inverse function of sine is arc sine.


Etymology

Origin of inverse function

First recorded in 1810–20

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Determine the domain and range of an inverse function, and restrict the domain of a function to make it one-to-one.

From Textbooks • Sep. 23, 2020

The distance the car travels in miles is a function of time, in hours given by Find the inverse function by expressing the time of travel in terms of the distance traveled.

From Textbooks • Sep. 23, 2020

Determine the domain and range of the inverse function.

From Textbooks • May 6, 2020

Note that the natural logarithm is one-to-one and therefore has an inverse function.

From Textbooks • Mar. 30, 2016

The second column is the inverse function, meaning an item costing $1 in 1989 would have cost about $.05 or $.06 back in the year 1900.

From Price/Cost Indexes from 1875 to 1989 by United States