Pythagorean
Americanadjective
noun
adjective
-
of or relating to Pythagoras
-
denoting the diatonic scale of eight notes arrived at by Pythagoras and based on a succession of fifths
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of Pythagorean
1540–50; < Latin Pȳthagorē ( us ) (< Greek Pȳthagóreios of Pythagoras) + -an
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.
He created a Pythagorean expectation formula, which Morey had once adapted for basketball, and calculates how often a team should have won based on how much it has scored and allowed.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 25, 2026
If verified, Johnson and Jackson’s proof would contradict mathematician and educator Elisha Loomis, who stated in his 1927 book The Pythagorean Proposition that no trigonometric proof of the Pythagorean theorem could be correct.
From Scientific American ● Apr. 10, 2023
“Yeah, Pythagorean theorem,” Kelly cracked when asked what he had learned from his players.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 28, 2022
And they defied Bill James’ Pythagorean Theorem of Baseball that projected them to go 76-86 based on their minus-51 run differential.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 20, 2022
To the Pythagorean mind, ratios controlled the universe, and what was true for the Pythagoreans soon became true for the entire West.
From "Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea" by Charles Seife
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.
