Newton's method

English

Etymology

Named after Isaac Newton.

Proper noun

Newton's method

1. (algebra, calculus) A method for finding successively better approximations to the roots (or zeroes) of a real-valued function.

Usage notes

For the equation $f(x)=0$, the iteration is $x_{n+1}=x_{n}-{\frac {f(x_{n})}{f'(x_{n})}}$, where $n=0,1,2,...$, and $x_{0}$ is the first approximation to the solution.

Synonyms

• Newton-Raphson method