protractor
Americannoun
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a person or thing that protracts.
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(in surveying, mathematics, etc.) an instrument having a graduated arc for plotting or measuring angles.
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Anatomy. a muscle that causes a part to protrude.
noun
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an instrument for measuring or drawing angles on paper, usually a flat semicircular transparent plastic sheet graduated in degrees
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a person or thing that protracts
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a surgical instrument for removing a bullet from the body
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anatomy a former term for extensor
Etymology
Origin of protractor
From Medieval Latin, dating back to 1605–15; see origin at protract, -tor
Explanation
A protractor is a device used in drafting and drawing: it's mainly used for drawing and measuring angles. Don't show up to geometry without your protractor! In math class, you use many tools, such as a calculator. Another is the protractor, which is handy when you're studying geometry. Protractors are designed to help you measure and draw angles. You can make a rhombus or an isosceles triangle with a protractor. A protractor can help you measure existing angles too, like if you’re taking a geometry test and need to compare angle measurements. Graphic artists, architects, and other professionals who need to make angles use protractors.
Vocabulary lists containing protractor
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
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Geometry - Introductory
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Geometry - Middle School
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Protractor: that which extends or lengthens out: applied to muscles.
From Explanation of Terms Used in Entomology by Smith, John. B.
In 1785 M. Morris of New York City made and sold his own invention of a "Nautical Protractor for the price of One Dollar."
From Early American Scientific Instruments and Their Makers by Bedini, Silvio A.
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.
