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parabolic

1 American  
[par-uh-bol-ik] / ˌpær əˈbɒl ɪk /

adjective

  1. having the form or outline of a parabola.

  2. having a longitudinal section in the form of a paraboloid or parabola.

    a parabolic reflector.

  3. of or relating to a parabola.

parabolic 2 American  
[par-uh-bol-ik] / ˌpær əˈbɒl ɪk /
Sometimes parabolical

adjective

  1. of, relating to, or involving a parable.

parabolic 1 British  
/ ˌpærəˈbɒlɪk /

adjective

  1. of, relating to, or shaped like a parabola

  2. shaped like a paraboloid

    a parabolic mirror
"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
parabolic 2 British  
/ ˌpærəˈbɒlɪk /

adjective

  1. of or resembling a parable

"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

Other Word Forms

  • nonparabolical adjective
  • nonparabolically adverb
  • parabolicalism noun
  • parabolically adverb

Etymology

Origin of parabolic1

First recorded in 1695–1705; parabol(a) + -ic

Origin of parabolic2

1650–60; < Late Latin parabolicus metaphoric < Late Greek parabolikós figurative, equivalent to Greek parabol ( ḗ ) parable + -ikos -ic

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.