rhombus
Americannoun
plural
rhombuses, rhombi-
an oblique-angled equilateral parallelogram; any equilateral parallelogram except a square.
-
an equilateral parallelogram, including the square as a special case.
-
a rhombohedron.
noun
plural
rhombusesEtymology
Origin of rhombus
First recorded in 1560–70; from Latin, from Greek rhómbos “anything that may be spun around,” derivative of rhémbein “to revolve”
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Explanation
A rhombus is a parallelogram with four equal sides and opposite equal angles. A rhombus can be a square, or if it has two acute angles and two obtuse angles, it takes the shape of a diamond. The rhombus gets its name from the Greek rhómbos, which means "a spinning top." This word describes the shape of a "bullroarer," an object that was tied to a cord and spun around, making a great noise. It was used to taunt bulls into action during bull-fighting events. This rhombus-shaped object has been documented as being used for religious rites and games all over the ancient world. Nowadays, we prefer to study the rhombus in geometry.
Vocabulary lists containing rhombus
Geometry - Introductory
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Geometry - Middle School
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Geometry (Base List)
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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.
They added a structure to one side of the rhombus to mimic a bomb-like object and observed how the droplet and its wave patterns changed in response.
From Science Daily • Dec. 12, 2023
I don’t know exactly what a leader in equity and well-being does, but I’d assume it involves a bunch of acronyms and maybe some other restorative shapes, like a triangle or a rhombus.
From Washington Post • Feb. 16, 2023
The underside of the structure — as well as the ceiling in the exhibition spaces — will not be flat concrete, like an overpass, but will bear a rhombus pattern drawn from the building’s structure.
From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 17, 2020
“A buttered heel of bread, a rhombus of stiff cheese, a puckered tangerine,” we’re shown on the first page.
From New York Times • Aug. 13, 2017
Sure enough, within seconds, a distant rhombus of ocher light containing her outline widened, paused, then narrowed to nothing as she entered the house and the door was closed behind her.
From "Atonement" by Ian McEwan
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.
