Dictionary
Thesaurus
Encyclopedia
Translator
Web
Related Searches
Nearby Words

Deltas

 - 7 dictionary results
Delta.com - Official Site
Book Direct and Save on Domestic & International Flights at Delta.com
www.Delta.com

del⋅ta

  [del-tuh]
Use Deltas in a Sentence
–noun
1. the fourth letter of the Greek alphabet (Δ, δ).
2. the consonant sound represented by this letter.
3. the fourth in a series of items.
4. anything triangular, like the Greek capital delta (Δ).
5. Mathematics. an incremental change in a variable, as Δ or δ.
6. a nearly flat plain of alluvial deposit between diverging branches of the mouth of a river, often, though not necessarily, triangular: the Nile delta.
7. (usually initial capital letter) a word used in communications to represent the letter D.
8. (initial capital letter) Astronomy. a star that is usually the fourth brightest of a constellation: The fourth brightest star in the Southern Cross is Delta Crucis.
Origin:
1350–1400; ME deltha < L delta < Gk délta; akin to Heb dāleth
Delta.com - Official Site
Book Direct and Save on Domestic & International Flights at Delta.com
www.Delta.com

Del⋅ta

  [del-tuh]
–noun Military.
the NATO name for a class of Soviet nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine armed with 16 multi-warhead missiles.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To Deltas
del·ta   (děl'tə)   
n.  

  1. The fourth letter of the Greek alphabet. See Table at alphabet.

  2. An object shaped like a triangle.

    1. A usually triangular alluvial deposit at the mouth of a river.

    2. A similar deposit at the mouth of a tidal inlet, caused by tidal currents.

  4. Mathematics A finite increment in a variable.


[Middle English, from Latin, from Greek, of Phoenician origin; see dl in Semitic roots.]
del·ta'ic (-tā'ĭk), del'tic (-tĭk) adj.
Word History: A Greek letter sits at the mouth of many rivers. Noticing the resemblance between the island formed by sediment at the mouth of a river such as the Nile and the triangular shape of their letter delta (Δ), the Greeks gave the name delta to such an island. English borrowed this sense from Greek, although the word delta appeared first in English as the name of the letter, in a work written possibly around 1200. The sense "alluvial deposit" is not recorded until 1555, when delta is used with reference to the Nile River delta.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

delta 
c.1200, Gk. letter shaped like a triangle, equivalent to our "D," the name from Phoenician daleth "tent door." Herodotus used it of the mouth of the Nile, and it was so used in Eng. from 1555; applied to other river mouths from 1790. Deltoid muscle so called since 1741, from its shape.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Financial Dictionary

delta

The change in the price of an option that results from a one-point change in the price of the underlying stock. For example, a delta of 0.5 indicates that the option will rise in price by 1/2 point (50¢) for each 1-point ($1) rise in the price of the underlying stock. Call options have positive deltas; put options have negative deltas.

Wall Street Words: An A to Z Guide to Investment Terms by David L. Scott.
Copyright © 2003. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
Cite This Source
Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: 2delta
Variant: or δ-
Function: adjective
1 : of or relating to one of four or more closely related chemicalsubstances delta chain of hemoglobin> <δ-yohimbine> —used somewhat arbitrarily to specify ordinal relationship or a particular physical form and especially one thatis allotropic, isomeric, or stereoisomeric (as in δ-benzene hexachloride)
2 : fourth in position in the structure of an organic molecule from a particular group or atom;also : having a structure characterized by such a position <δ-hydroxy acids> <δ-lactones>
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
Cite This Source
Medical Dictionary

delta del·ta (děl'tə)
n.


  1. Symbol δ, Δ The fourth letter of the Greek alphabet.

  2. The fourth one in a series.

  3. A surface or part that resembles a triangle, such as the terminus of a pattern in a fingerprint or the shape of a muscle.

adj.

  1. Of or characterizing the atom or radical group that is fourth in position from the functional group of atoms in an organic molecule.

  2. Of or relating to one of four closely related chemical substances.

  3. Relating to or characterizing a polypeptide chain that is one of five types of heavy chains present in immunoglobins.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Cite This Source
Search another word or see Deltas on Thesaurus | Reference
FacebookTwitterFollow us:
Partner Sites:
Ask AnswersEviteExpediaHotelsHotwireLife123LiveDailyMy Way