cusp

[ kuhsp ]
See synonyms for cusp on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a point that marks the beginning of a change: Our nation is on the cusp of a new era.Some of our machines are now getting very old and are on the cusp of being replaced.

  2. a point or pointed end: The sharp cusp of the mountain pierced through the thick clouds.

  1. Anatomy, Zoology, Botany. a point, projection, or elevation, as on the crown of a tooth.

  2. Also called spinode. Geometry. a point where two branches of a curve meet, end, and are tangent.

  3. Architecture. a decorative device consisting of a pair of curves that are tangent to a real or imaginary line defining the area being decorated, and meet at a point within that area: used especially in Gothic architecture to vary the outlines of intrados or to form architectural foils.

  4. Astronomy. a point of a crescent, especially of the moon.

  5. Astrology.

    • the zodiacal degree that marks the separation between consecutive houses or signs: Those born on the Cancer/Leo cusp have the vitality and ambition to be successful in their creative endeavors.

    • Informal. a person born during a time when the sun is at the very end of one sign or at the very beginning of another: Virgos and Virgo cusps tend to be shy and somewhat nervous, and they may be undemonstrative.I'm an Aries/Pisces cusp with Capricorn rising.

Origin of cusp

1
First recorded in 1575–85, from Latin cuspis “a point”

Other words from cusp

  • cusp·al, adjective

Words Nearby cusp

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use cusp in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for cusp

cusp

/ (kʌsp) /


noun
  1. any of the small elevations on the grinding or chewing surface of a tooth

  2. any of the triangular flaps of a heart valve

  1. a point or pointed end

  2. Also called: spinode geometry a point at which two arcs of a curve intersect and at which the two tangents are coincident

  3. architect a carving at the meeting place of two arcs

  4. astronomy either of the points of a crescent moon or of a satellite or inferior planet in a similar phase

  5. astrology any division between houses or signs of the zodiac

Origin of cusp

1
C16: from Latin cuspis point, pointed end

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012