secant

American  

[see-kant, -kuhnt] / ˈsi kænt, -kənt /

noun

1. Geometry. an intersecting line, especially one intersecting a curve at two or more points.

2. Trigonometry.

   1. (in a right triangle) the ratio of the hypotenuse to the side adjacent to a given angle.

   2. (originally) a line from the center of a circle through one extremity of an arc to the tangent from the other extremity.

   3. the ratio of the length of this line to that of the radius of the circle; the reciprocal of the cosine of a given angle or arc. sec

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adjective

1. cutting or intersecting, as one line or surface in relation to another.

secant British  

/ ˈsiːkənt /

noun

1. sec. (of an angle) a trigonometric function that in a right-angled triangle is the ratio of the length of the hypotenuse to that of the adjacent side; the reciprocal of cosine

2. a line that intersects a curve

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secant Scientific  

/ sē′kănt′ /

1. A straight line or ray that intersects a curve, especially a circle, at two or more points.

2. The ratio of the length of the hypotenuse in a right triangle to the side adjacent to an acute angle. The secant is the inverse of the cosine.

3. The reciprocal of the abscissa of the endpoint of an arc of a unit circle centered at the origin of a Cartesian coordinate system, the arc being of length x and measured counterclockwise from the point (1, 0) if x is positive or clockwise if x is negative.

4. A function of a number x, equal to the secant of an angle whose measure in radians is equal to x.

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Other Word Forms

• secantly
  adverb

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Etymology

Origin of secant

1585–95; < Latin secant- (stem of secāns, present participle of secāre to cut), equivalent to sec- verb stem ( see saw ¹) + -ant- -ant

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

secant

Then, we can find the other trigonometric functions easily because we know that the reciprocal of sine is cosecant, the reciprocal of cosine is secant, and the reciprocal of tangent is cotangent.

From Textbooks ● Dec. 1, 2021

We will see that each of these two methods for finding the slope of a secant line is of value.

From Textbooks ● Mar. 30, 2016

We formally define a secant line as follows:

From Textbooks ● Mar. 30, 2016

If we choose to change y instead of x by the same incremental value h, then the secant line is parallel to the y-axis and so is the tangent line.

From Textbooks ● Mar. 30, 2016

He felt the necessity of gaining a more firm footing, and turned toward the road by the shortest secant line.

From The Vicomte de Bragelonne Or Ten Years Later being the completion of "The Three Musketeers" And "Twenty Years After" by Alexandre Dumas père

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