ABSCISSAE

ABSCISSA

abscissa

(noun) the value of a coordinate on the horizontal axis

Source: WordNet® 3.1


Noun

abscissae

plural of abscissa

Source: Wiktionary


ABSCISSA

Ab*scis"sa, n.; E. pl. Abscissas, L. pl. Abscissæ. Etym: [L., fem. of abscissus, p. p. of absindere to cut of. See Abscind.] (Geom.)

Definition: One of the elements of reference by which a point, as of a curve, is referred to a system of fixed rectilineal coördinate axes.

Note: When referred to two intersecting axes, one of them called the axis of abscissas, or of X, and the other the axis of ordinates, or of Y, the abscissa of the point is the distance cut off from the axis of X by a line drawn through it and parallel to the axis of Y. When a point in space is referred to three axes having a common intersection, the abscissa may be the distance measured parallel to either of them, from the point to the plane of the other two axes. Abscissas and ordinates taken together are called coördinates.

– OX or PY is the abscissa of the point P of the curve, OY or PX its ordinate, the intersecting lines OX and OY being the axes of abscissas and ordinates respectively, and the point O their origin.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



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Word of the Day

6 June 2025

PUNGENCY

(noun) wit having a sharp and caustic quality; “he commented with typical pungency”; “the bite of satire”


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You can overdose on coffee if you drink about 30 cups in a brief period to get close to a lethal dosage of caffeine.

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