latus rectum

American  

[ley-tuhs rek-tuhm] / ˈleɪ təs ˈrɛk təm /

noun

Geometry.

latera recta plural

1. the chord perpendicular to the principal axis and passing through a focus of an ellipse, parabola, or hyperbola.

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latus rectum British  

/ ˈlɑːtəs ˈrɛktəm /

noun

1. geometry a chord that passes through the focus of a conic and is perpendicular to the major axis

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• latera recta
  plural

Etymology

Origin of latus rectum

1695–1705; < New Latin: literally, straight side

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

latus rectum

TRY IT #1 Graph Identify and label the focus, directrix, and endpoints of the latus rectum.

From Textbooks ● Feb. 13, 2015

For the following exercises, the vertex and endpoints of the latus rectum of a parabola are given.

From Textbooks ● Feb. 13, 2015

The endpoints of the latus rectum lie on the curve.

From Textbooks ● Feb. 13, 2015

If we sketch lines tangent to the parabola at the endpoints of the latus rectum, these lines intersect on the axis of symmetry, as shown in Figure 6.

From Textbooks ● Feb. 13, 2015

The key features of a parabola are its vertex, axis of symmetry, focus, directrix, and latus rectum.

From Textbooks ● Feb. 13, 2015