perimeter

[puh-rim-i-ter]

noun

1. a line bounding or marking off an area.

   The police created a perimeter with caution tape around the crime scene.

2. the outermost limits.

   Under the new regulations, the smoke-free area for playgrounds and sports areas extends 20 meters from the perimeter of each site.

3. Geometry.

   1. the border or outer boundary of a two-dimensional figure.

   2. the length of such a boundary.

4. Military.,  a fortified boundary that protects a troop position.

5. Ophthalmology.,  an instrument for determining the peripheral field of vision.

6. Basketball.,  Often the perimeter

   1. Also called three-point line. a semicircular line on a basketball court surrounding the basket, outside of which field goals are worth three points rather than two.

   2. the area outside this line (often used attributively).

      There's no player in the NBA who puts more pressure on opposing defenses from the perimeter than him.

      The team needs an efficient point guard with a great perimeter shot.

perimeter

/ ˌpɛrɪˈmɛtrɪk, pəˈrɪmɪtə /

noun

1. maths

   1. the curve or line enclosing a plane area

   2. the length of this curve or line

2. 1. any boundary around something, such as a field

   2. ( as modifier )

      a perimeter fence

      a perimeter patrol

3. a medical instrument for measuring the limits of the field of vision

perimeter

1. The sum of the lengths of the segments that form the sides of a polygon.

2. The total length of any closed curve, such as the circumference of a circle.

Other Word Forms

• perimeterless adjective
• perimetral adjective
• perimetric adjective
• perimetrical adjective
• perimetrically adverb
• perimetry noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of perimeter¹

First recorded in 1585–95; from French périmètre, from Latin perimetros (feminine), from Greek perímetron (neuter); equivalent to peri- + -meter

Word History and Origins

Origin of perimeter¹

C16: from French périmètre, from Latin perimetros; see _peri- , _-meter

Example Sentences

And yet for all the acreage, the icons at the screen’s perimeter are crowded and hard to read.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

“Expensive Basketball” is an encyclopedic romp through hoops history, footnotes strewn throughout like so many perimeter ball screens, threads blissfully unconnected.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

A few lampposts stick out from the perimeter of the dock, blinking in and out of power.

Read more on Literature

The attackers "engaged police personnel on duty in a gun duel" before scaling the perimeter fence and seizing the students from their hostel, a statement said.

Read more on BBC

He can’t board a train or do anything else ordinary people do without generating a perimeter of chaos.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• boundary 
• confines www.thesaurus.com
• edge 
• fringe 
• periphery