polyhedron

[ pol-ee-hee-druh n ]

/ ˌpɒl iˈhi drən /

noun, plural pol·y·he·drons, pol·y·he·dra [pol-ee-hee-druh] /ˌpɒl iˈhi drə/.

a solid figure having many faces.

Nearby words

Origin of polyhedron

1560–70; < Greek polýedron, neuter of polýedros having many bases. See poly-, -hedron

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for polyhedron

The points thus obtained are evidently the vertices of a polyhedron with plane faces.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 17, Slice 8|Various
Such a polyhedron (πολύς, many, ἕδρα, base or face) is known as a crystal.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 7, Slice 7|Various
Crime, he admitted, is a very complex phenomenon; it is a sort of polyhedron, of which every one sees a special side.
The Criminal|Havelock Ellis
The division of a Polyhedron ariseth from the bases upon which it standeth.
The Way To Geometry|Peter Ramus

Synacral, sin-ak′ral, adj. having a common vertex, as faces of a polyhedron.
Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 4 of 4: S-Z and supplements)|Various

British Dictionary definitions for polyhedron

polyhedron

/ (ˌpɒlɪˈhiːdrən) /

noun plural -drons or -dra (-drə)

a solid figure consisting of four or more plane faces (all polygons), pairs of which meet along an edge, three or more edges meeting at a vertex. In a regular polyhedron all the faces are identical regular polygons making equal angles with each other. Specific polyhedrons are named according to the number of faces, such as tetrahedron, icosahedron, etc

Derived Formspolyhedral, adjective

Word Origin for polyhedron

C16: from Greek poluedron, from poly- + hedron side, base

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 polyhedron

polyhedron

1560s, from Latinized form of Greek polyedron, neuter of adjective polyedros "having many bases or sides," from polys "many" (see poly-) + hedra "seat, base, chair, face of a geometric solid," from PIE root *sed- (1) "to sit" (see sedentary).

Science definitions for polyhedron

polyhedron

[ pŏl′ē-hē′drən ]

Plural polyhedrons polyhedra

A three-dimensional geometric figure whose sides are polygons. A tetrahedron, for example, is a polyhedron having four triangular sides.♦ A regular polyhedron is a polyhedron whose faces are all congruent regular polygons. The regular tetrahedron (pyramid), hexahedron (cube), octahedron, dodecahedron, and icosahedron are the five regular polyhedrons. Regular polyhedrons are a type of Archimedean solid.

Related formspolyhedral adjective