vertex

American  

[vur-teks] / ˈvɜr tɛks /

noun

plural

vertexes, vertices

1. the highest point of something; apex; summit; top.

   the vertex of a mountain.

2. Anatomy, Zoology. the crown or top of the head.

3. Craniometry. the highest point on the midsagittal plane of the skull or head viewed from the left side when the skull or head is in the Frankfurt horizontal.

4. Astronomy. a point in the celestial sphere toward which or from which the common motion of a group of stars is directed.

5. Geometry.

   1. the point farthest from the base.

      the vertex of a cone or of a pyramid.

   2. a point in a geometrical solid common to three or more sides.

   3. the intersection of two sides of a plane figure.

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vertex British  

/ ˈvɜːtɛks /

noun

1. the highest point

2. maths

   1. the point opposite the base of a figure

   2. the point of intersection of two sides of a plane figure or angle

   3. the point of intersection of a pencil of lines or three or more planes of a solid figure

3. astronomy a point in the sky towards which a star stream appears to move

4. anatomy the crown of the head

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vertex Scientific  

/ vûr′tĕks′ /

plural

vertices

1. The point at which the sides of an angle intersect.

2. The point of a triangle, cone, or pyramid that is opposite to and farthest away from its base.

3. A point of a polyhedron at which three or more of the edges intersect.

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Etymology

Origin of vertex

First recorded in 1560–70; from Latin: “a whirl, top (of the head),” equivalent to vert(ere) “to turn” + -ex (stem -ic- ) noun suffix

Example Sentences

This was practically confirmed using a vertex cover problem with 4096 vertices.

From Science Daily • Mar. 25, 2024

The vertex of the graph of the quadratic function in the form .

From Textbooks • Sep. 23, 2020

Be sure to label the vertex as an ordered pair.

From Textbooks • Sep. 23, 2020

The vertex is on the line x = −1 .

From Textbooks • May 6, 2020

I stared at the peak for perhaps thirty minutes, trying to apprehend what it would be like to be standing on that gale- swept vertex.

From "Into Thin Air" by Jon Krakauer