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ordinate

[awr-dn-it, -eyt]
See more synonyms for ordinate on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. Mathematics. (in plane Cartesian coordinates) the y-coordinate of a point: its distance from the x-axis measured parallel to the y-axis.
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Compare abscissa.

Origin of ordinate

1670–80; extracted from New Latin (līnea) ordināte (applicāta) (line applied) in order; ordināte (adv.), derivative of Latin ordinātus arranged. See ordination
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for ordinate

Historical Examples

  • The position MX on the ordinate marks the beginning of the second period.

    Essay on the Creative Imagination

    Th. Ribot

  • Of three angles of an ordinate quinquangle, is made the angle of a Dodecahedrum.

  • This upper branch of the curve is not shown in the figure, as the ordinate corresponding to 30 would be very great.

  • The ordinate is the correction to be added to the observed reading to reduce to a uniform scale.

  • A curve is thus obtained, the ordinate representing growth elongation and the abscissa the time.

    Life Movements in Plants

    Sir Jagadis Chunder Bose

British Dictionary definitions for ordinate

ordinate

noun
  1. the vertical or y -coordinate of a point in a two-dimensional system of Cartesian coordinatesCompare abscissa See also Cartesian coordinates
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Word Origin

C16: from New Latin phrase (linea) ordināte (applicāta) (line applied) in an orderly manner, from ordināre to arrange in order
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 ordinate

adj.

late 14c., from Latin ordinatus, past participle of ordinare "arrange, set in order" (see ordain). Related: Ordinately.

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v.

1560s, from Latin ordinatus, past participle of ordinare "arrange, set in order" (see ordain). Related: Ordinated; ordinating.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
ordinate in Medicine

ordinate

(ôr′dn-ĭt, -āt′)
n.
  1. The plane Cartesian coordinate representing the distance from a specified point to the x-axis, measured parallel to the y-axis.
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
ordinate in Science

ordinate

[ôr′dn-ĭt]
  1. The distance of a point from the x-axis on a graph in the Cartesian coordinate system. It is measured parallel to the y-axis. For example, a point having coordinates (2,3) has 3 as its ordinate. Compare abscissa.
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The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.