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tangent

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

English

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A straight line tangent to a curve
Tangent function of unit circle

Etymology

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Borrowed from Latin tangentem, the accusative of tangēns (“touching”) (in the phrase līnea tangēns (“a touching line”)), the present participle of the verb tangō (“touch”, verb), from Proto-Italic *tangō, from Proto-Indo-European *teh₂g- (“to touch”).

Cognate with Old English þaccian (“to touch lightly, pat, stroke”). More at thack, thwack.

Pronunciation

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Noun

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tangent (plural tangents)

  1. (differential geometry) A straight line touching a curve at a single point without crossing it there.
    • 1951 May, “British Railways Standard Coaches”, in Railway Magazine, page 327:
      One feature of the body, which is constructed of pressed-steel members, is the contour of the sides. They are in the form of a continuous radius from the bottom side to the cant rail, and to enable flat glass windows to be fitted the side panels are pressed around the window opening, forming a tangent to the curved bodyside.
    Synonym: tangent line
  2. (mathematics) A function of an angle that gives the ratio of the sine to the cosine, in either the real or complex numbers. Symbols: tan, tg.
  3. A topic nearly unrelated to the main topic, but having a point in common with it.
    I believe we went off onto a tangent when we started talking about monkeys on unicycles at his retirement party.
    • 1928, Lawrence R. Bourne, chapter 1, in Well Tackled!‎[1]:
      “Uncle Barnaby was always father and mother to me,” Benson broke in; then after a pause his mind flew off at a tangent. “Is old Hannah all right—in the will, I mean?”
    • 2009: Stuart Heritage, Hecklerspray, Friday the 22nd of May in 2009 at 1 o’clock p.m., “Jon & Kate Latest: People You Don’t Know Do Crap You Don’t Care About”
      Jon & Kate Plus 8 is a show based on two facts: (1) Jon and Kate Gosselin have eight children, and (2) the word ‘Kate’ rhymes with the word ‘eight’. One suspects that if Kate were ever to have another child, a shady network executive would urge her to put it in a binbag with a brick and drop it down a well. But this is just a horrifying tangent.
  4. (art) A visual interaction between two or more lines or edges that creates a perceived relationship between them, often in a way that the artist did not intend.
  5. (music) A small metal blade in a clavichord that strikes the strings to produce sound.

Derived terms

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Translations

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The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked

Adjective

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tangent (not comparable)

  1. (geometry) Touching a curve at a single point but not crossing it at that point.
  2. Of a topic, only loosely related to a main topic.
  3. (rail transport, of track) Straight; not horizontally curved.
    The collision occurred on a two-mile stretch of tangent track.

Derived terms

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See also

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Catalan

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Etymology

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Borrowed from Latin tangentem.

Pronunciation

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Noun

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tangent f (plural tangents)

  1. (trigonometry) tangent

Derived terms

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Further reading

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Danish

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Etymology

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Ultimately from Latin tangēns; cf. German Tangente.

Noun

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tangent c (singular definite tangenten, plural indefinite tangenter)

  1. (geometry) tangent
    Differentialregning kan fortolkes som forsøget på at bestemme en tangents hældning.
    Differential calculus may be interpreted as the attempt to determine the slope of a tangent.
  2. piano key

Declension

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Declension of tangent
common
gender 		Singular Plural
indefinite definite indefinite definite
nominative tangent tangenten tangenter tangenterne
genitive tangents tangentens tangenters tangenternes
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References

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French

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Etymology

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Borrowed from Latin tangentem.

Pronunciation

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Adjective

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tangent (feminine tangente, masculine plural tangents, feminine plural tangentes)

  1. (mathematics) tangential
  2. borderline

Further reading

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Latin

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Pronunciation

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Verb

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tangent

  1. third-person plural future active indicative of tangō

Norwegian Bokmål

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Norwegian Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia no

Etymology

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From German Tangente, Tangens, ultimately from Latin tangēns.

Noun

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tangent m (definite singular tangenten, indefinite plural tangenter, definite plural tangentene)

  1. (geometry) tangent
  2. (music) key (e.g., on a piano)

References

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Norwegian Nynorsk

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Norwegian Nynorsk Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia nn

Etymology

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From German Tangente, Tangens, ultimately from Latin tangēns.

Noun

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tangent m (definite singular tangenten, indefinite plural tangentar, definite plural tangentane)

  1. (geometry) tangent
  2. (music) key (e.g., on a piano)

References

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Romanian

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Etymology

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Borrowed from French tangent, Latin tangēns, tangentem.

Adjective

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tangent m or n (feminine singular tangentă, masculine plural tangenți, feminine and neuter plural tangente)

  1. tangent

Declension

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singular plural
masculine neuter feminine masculine neuter feminine
nominative-
accusative 		indefinite tangent tangentă tangenți tangente
definite tangentul tangenta tangenții tangentele
genitive-
dative 		indefinite tangent tangente tangenți tangente
definite tangentului tangentei tangenților tangentelor

Swedish

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Swedish Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia sv

Etymology

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Ultimately from Latin tangēns; cf. German Tangente.

Noun

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tangent c

  1. a key (on a typewriter, computer keyboard, piano, or the like)
  2. (mathematics) a tangent
  3. (mathematics, dated, only in the singular definite) tangent (trigonometric function)
    Synonyms: tangens, tan

Declension

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Declension of tangent
nominative genitive
singular indefinite tangent tangents
definite tangenten tangentens
plural indefinite tangenter tangenters
definite tangenterna tangenternas

Derived terms

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References

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