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surd

[ surd ]
/ sɜrd /
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adjective

Phonetics. voiceless (opposed to sonant).
Mathematics. (of a quantity) not capable of being expressed in rational numbers; irrational.

noun

Phonetics. a voiceless consonant (opposed to sonant).
Mathematics. a surd quantity.

RELATED WORDS

dumb, inarticulate, mum, mute, silent, speechless, aphonic

Nearby words

  1. surcease,
  2. surcharge,
  3. surcingle,
  4. surcoat,
  5. surculose,
  6. sure,
  7. sure as shooting,
  8. sure cure,
  9. sure enough,
  10. sure of oneself

Origin of surd

First recorded in 1545–55, surd is from the Latin word surdus dull-sounding, mute, deaf
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for surd

British Dictionary definitions for surd

surd

/ (sɜːd) /

noun

maths an expression containing one or more irrational roots of numbers, such as 2√3 + 3√2 + 6
phonetics a voiceless consonant, such as (t)

adjective

of or relating to a surd

Word Origin for surd

C16: from Latin surdus muffled
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 surd

surd

adj.

1550s, "irrational" (of numbers), from Latin surdus "unheard, silent, dull," possibly related to susurrus "a muttering, whispering" (see susurration). The mathematical sense is from the use of Latin surdus to translate Arabic (jadhr) asamm "deaf (root)," itself a loan-translation of Greek alogos, literally "speechless, without reason" (Euclid book x, Def.). In French, sourd remains the principal word for "deaf."

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper