Dictionary
Thesaurus
Reference
Translate
Web
Related Searches
on Ask.com
Nearby Entries
ellipses - 5 dictionary results

el⋅lipse

  [i-lips]
Use ellipses in a Sentence
–noun Geometry.
a plane curve such that the sums of the distances of each point in its periphery from two fixed points, the foci, are equal. It is a conic section formed by the intersection of a right circular cone by a plane that cuts the axis and the surface of the cone. Typical equation: (x2/a2) + (y2/b2) = 1. If a = b the ellipse is a circle.

Origin:
1745–55; < F < L ellīpsis ellipsis; or by back formation from the pl. ellipses

el⋅lip⋅sis

  [i-lip-sis]
–noun, plural -ses  [-seez] .
1. Grammar.
a. the omission from a sentence or other construction of one or more words that would complete or clarify the construction, as the omission of who are, while I am, or while we are from I like to interview people sitting down.
b. the omission of one or more items from a construction in order to avoid repeating the identical or equivalent items that are in a preceding or following construction, as the omission of been to Paris from the second clause of I've been to Paris, but they haven't.
2. Printing. a mark or marks as ——, …, or * * *, to indicate an omission or suppression of letters or words.
Origin:
1560–70; < L ellīpsis < Gk élleipsis an omission, equiv. to el- (var. of en- en- 2 ) + leip- (s. of leípein to leave) + -sis -sis
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To ellipses
el·lipse   (ĭ-lĭps')   


(click for larger image in new window)
n.  
  1. A plane curve, especially:
    1. A conic section whose plane is not parallel to the axis, base, or generatrix of the intersected cone.
    2. The locus of points for which the sum of the distances from each point to two fixed points is equal.
  2. Ellipsis.

[French, from Latin ellīpsis, from Greek elleipsis, a falling short, ellipse, from elleipein, to fall short (from the relationship between the line joining the vertices of a conic and the line through the focus and parallel to the directrix of a conic) : en-, in; see en-2 + leipein, to leave; see leikw- in Indo-European roots.]
el·lip·sis   (ĭ-lĭp'sĭs)   
n.   pl. el·lip·ses (-sēz)
    1. The omission of a word or phrase necessary for a complete syntactical construction but not necessary for understanding.
    2. An example of such omission.
  2. A mark or series of marks ( . . . or * * * , for example) used in writing or printing to indicate an omission, especially of letters or words.

[Latin ellīpsis, from Greek elleipsis, from elleipein, to fall short; see ellipse.]
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
ellipse   (ĭ-lĭps')  Pronunciation Key 
A closed, symmetric curve shaped like an oval, which can be formed by intersecting a cone with a plane that is not parallel or perpendicular to the cone's base. The sum of the distances of any point on an ellipse from two fixed points (called the foci) remains constant no matter where the point is on the curve.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Search another word or see ellipses on Thesaurus | Reference