quaternion

[kwuh-tur-nee-uh n]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR quaternion ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a group or set of four persons or things.

Bookbinding. four gathered sheets folded in two for binding together.

Mathematics.

an expression of the form a + bi + cj + dk, where a, b, c, and d are real numbers; i2 = j2 = k2 = −1; and ij = −ji = k, jk = −kj = i, and ki = −ik = j.
a quantity or operator expressed as the sum of a real number and three complex numbers, equivalent to the quotient of two vectors. The field of quaternions is not commutative under multiplication.

Origin of quaternion

1350–1400; Middle English quaternioun < Late Latin quaterniōn- (stem of quaterniō), equivalent to Latin quatern(ī) four at a time + -iōn- -ion

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

Related Words for quaternion

tetralogy, tetrad, quaternity, quadrivium, quadruplet, quadruple, quaternion, quaternary, quadrumvirate, quartet, quadrigeminal

Examples from the Web for quaternion

Historical Examples of quaternion

Even then the captain of the gate was replying to a question from the quaternion.
Ulric the Jarl
William O. Stoddard
Should neither player be able to form a quaternion, then the game is drawn.
Three Hundred Things a Bright Boy Can Do
Anonymous
The quaternion was a gathering of four sheets of vellum, each folded once; thus forming sixteen pages.
Illuminated Manuscripts in Classical and Mediaeval Times
J. Henry Middleton
William Hare, the second of our quaternion, was also a native of Ireland, having been born in the neighbourhood of Londonderry.
The Court of Cacus
Alexander Leighton
As regard class of the first quaternion, like Sancho Panza I have no intention of indicating how old these may be.
Legends & Romances of Spain
Lewis Spence

British Dictionary definitions for quaternion

quaternion

noun

maths a generalized complex number consisting of four components, x = x 0 + x 1 i + x 2 j + x 3 k, where x, x 0 … x 3 are real numbers and i² = j² = k² = –1, ij = –ji = k, etc

another word for quaternary (def. 5)

Word Origin for quaternion

C14: from Late Latin quaterniōn, from Latin quaternī four at a time

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

quaternion in Science

quaternion

[kwə-tûr′nē-ən]

Any number of the form a + bi + cj + dk where a, b, c, and d are real numbers, ij = k, i2 = j2 = -1, and ij = -ji. Under addition and multiplication, quaternions have all the properties of a field, except that multiplication is not commutative.