vanishing point

American  

noun

1. a point of disappearance, cessation, or extinction.

   His patience had reached the vanishing point.

2. (in the study of perspective in art) that point toward which receding parallel lines appear to converge.

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vanishing point British  

noun

1. the point to which parallel lines appear to converge in the rendering of perspective, usually on the horizon

2. a point in space or time at or beyond which something disappears or ceases to exist

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Etymology

Origin of vanishing point

First recorded in 1790–1800

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

vanishing point

“I understand they have a job to do,” she said, gazing toward the tent city, which, from here, seemed to meld toward a vanishing point.

From Slate ● Feb. 23, 2026

Ours pointed out fluffy booby hatchlings in the low branches of trees on one motu, and showed us up close the massive coconut crabs whose kind is coming back from the vanishing point.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 20, 2024

The painting’s primary form is the big, top log that booms outward while its back end diminishes swiftly to a distant vanishing point.

From New York Times ● Jul. 27, 2023

“The vanishing point corresponding to parallel lines on the screen, price, and ‘Don’t blame…’ text are inconsistent,” Farid wrote.

From Seattle Times ● Jun. 3, 2022

In this, 14 and 17, the vanishing point, incomprehensible in Aristotelian terms, is mysteriously obscured, showing how sensitive artists were to the clash between mathematics and philosophy.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton