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subtend

 - 3 dictionary results

sub⋅tend

  [suhb-tend, suhb-]
Use subtend in a Sentence
–verb (used with object)
1. Geometry. to extend under or be opposite to: a chord subtending an arc.
2. Botany. (of a leaf, bract, etc.) to occur beneath or close to.
3. to form or mark the outline or boundary of.
Origin:
1560–70; < L subtendere to stretch beneath, equiv. to sub- sub- + tendere to stretch; see tend 1
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To subtend
sub·tend   (səb-těnd')   
tr.v.   sub·tend·ed, sub·tend·ing, sub·tends

  1. Mathematics To be opposite to and delimit: The side of a triangle subtends the opposite angle.

  2. To underlie so as to enclose or surround: flowers subtended by leafy bracts.


[Latin subtendere, to extend underneath : sub-, sub- + tendere, to extend; see ten- in Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

subtend 
1570, from L. subtendere, from sub "under" + tendere "to stretch" (see tenet).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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