PARABOLIC

parabolic, parabolical

(adjective) having the form of a parabola

parabolic, parabolical

(adjective) resembling or expressed by parables

Source: WordNet® 3.1


Etymology

Adjective

parabolic (not comparable)

Of, or pertaining to, or in the shape of a parabola or paraboloid

Of or pertaining to a parable

Synonyms

• parabolical

Noun

parabolic (plural parabolics)

(mathematics) A parabolic function, equation etc

Source: Wiktionary


Par`a*bol"ic, Par`a*bol"ic*al, a. Etym: [Gr. parabolique. See Parable.]

1. Of the nature of a parable; expressed by a parable or figure; allegorical; as, parabolical instruction.

2. Etym: [From Parabola.] (Geom.) (a) Having the form or nature of a parabola; pertaining to, or resembling, a parabola; as, a parabolic curve. (b) Generated by the revolution of a parabola, or by a line that moves on a parabola as a directing curve; as, a parabolic conoid. Parabolic conoid, a paraboloid; a conoid whose directing curve is a parabola. See Conoid.

– Parabolic mirror (Opt.), a mirror having a paraboloidal surface which gives for parallel rays (as those from very distant objects) images free from aberration. It is used in reflecting telescopes.

– Parabolic spindle, the solid generated by revolving the portion of a parabola cut off by a line drawn at right angles to the axis of the curve, about that line as an axis.

– Parabolic spiral, a spiral curve conceived to be formed by the periphery of a semiparabola when its axis is wrapped about a circle; also, any other spiral curve having an analogy to the parabola.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



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Word of the Day

10 June 2025

COMMUNICATIONS

(noun) the discipline that studies the principles of transmiting information and the methods by which it is delivered (as print or radio or television etc.); “communications is his major field of study”


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Coffee Trivia

The world’s most expensive coffee costs more than US$700 per kilogram. Asian palm civet – a cat-like creature in Indonesia, eats fruits, including select coffee cherries. It excretes partially digested seeds that produce a smooth, less acidic brew of coffee called kopi luwak.

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