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spheroid

[sfeer-oid]Geometry
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noun
  1. a solid geometrical figure similar in shape to a sphere, as an ellipsoid.
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adjective
  1. spheroidal.
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Origin of spheroid

1655–65; < Latin sphaeroīdēs < Greek sphairoeidḗs. See sphere, -oid
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

spherical, rounded, cylindrical, elliptical, oval, curved, bulbous, planet, world, map, bowed, looped, arched, spiral, circular, arced, bent, ringed, coiled, spheroid

Examples from the Web for spheroid

Historical Examples

  • Indignantly he had taken his calculations, his blue prints of the spheroid, along with him.

    Slaves of Mercury

    Nat Schachner

  • Its shape is not absolutely spherical, but spheroid—that is, flattened at the poles.

    Astronomy for Amateurs

    Camille Flammarion

  • The spheroid went to the side, sailing low, and out of bounds.

    A Quarter-Back's Pluck

    Lester Chadwick

  • There was a futile attempt to block the kick, but the spheroid sailed over the bar.

    A Quarter-Back's Pluck

    Lester Chadwick

  • The earth is a spheroid, and hence it pulls and is pulled by the moon with a slightly uncentric attraction.

British Dictionary definitions for spheroid

spheroid

noun
  1. maths another name for ellipsoid of revolution
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adjective
  1. shaped like but not exactly a sphere
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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

Word Origin and History for spheroid

n.

1660s, from Latin sphaeroides, from Greek sphairoeides, from sphaira (see sphere) + -oeides "form" (see -oid).

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
spheroid in Medicine

spheroid

(sfîr′oid′, sfĕr′-)
adj.
  1. Having a generally spherical shape.
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Related formsspher′oid′ n.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
spheroid in Science

spheroid

[sfîr′oid′]
  1. A three-dimensional geometric surface generated by rotating an ellipse on or about one of its axes.
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The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.