tropic-cancer
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Dictionary.com Unabridged
ɪk noun
1.
Geography.
a.
either of two corresponding parallels of latitude on the terrestrial globe, one (tropic of Cancer) about 23½° N, and the other (tropic of Capricorn) about 23½° S of the equator, being the boundaries of the Torrid Zone. See diag. under zone.
b.
the tropics, the regions lying between and near these parallels of latitude; the Torrid Zone and neighboring regions.
2.
Astronomy. either of two circles on the celestial sphere, one lying in the same plane as the tropic of Cancer, the other in the same plane as the tropic of capricorn.
adjective
3.
of, pertaining to, characteristic of, or occurring in the tropics; tropical: romance under the tropic skies of Old Mexico.
Origin:
1350–1400; Middle English < Latin tropicus < Greek tropikós pertaining to a turn, equivalent to tróp(os) turn + -ikos -ic
1350–1400; Middle English < Latin tropicus < Greek tropikós pertaining to a turn, equivalent to tróp(os) turn + -ikos -ic
Related forms
non·trop·ic, adjective
un·trop·ic, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To tropic-cancer
00:10
Tropic-cancer
is always a great word to know.
So is interrobang. Does it mean:
| a scrap or morsel of food left at a meal. |
| a printed punctuation mark (‽), available only in some typefaces, designed to combine the question mark (?) and the exclamation point (!), indicating a mixture of query and interjection, as after a rhetorical question. |
Collins
World English Dictionary
tropic (ˈtrɒpɪk) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —n | |
| 1. | (sometimes capital) either of the parallel lines of latitude at about 23½°N (tropic of Cancer) and 23½°S (tropic of Capricorn) of the equator |
| 2. | (often capital) the tropics that part of the earth's surface between the tropics of Cancer and Capricorn; the Torrid Zone |
| 3. | astronomy either of the two parallel circles on the celestial sphere having the same latitudes and names as the corresponding lines on the earth |
| —adj | |
| 4. | a less common word for tropical |
| [C14: from Late Latin tropicus belonging to a turn, from Greek tropikos, from tropos a turn; from the ancient belief that the sun turned back at the solstices] | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
tropic
c.1391, "either of the two circles in the celestial sphere which describe the northernmost and southernmost points of the ecliptic," from L.L. tropicus "of or pertaining to the solstice" (as a noun, "one of the tropics"), from L. tropicus "pertaining to a turn," from Gk. tropikos "of or pertaining to
a turn or change, or to the solstice" (as a noun, "the solstice"), from trope "a turning" (see trope). The notion is of the point at which the sun "turns back" after reaching its northernmost or southernmost point in the sky. Extended 1527 to the corresponding latitudes on the earth's surface (23 degrees 28 minutes north and south); meaning "region between these parallels" is from 1837. Tropical "hot and lush like the climate of the tropics" is first attested 1834.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Medical Dictionary
cancer can·cer (kān'sər)
n.
Abbr. CA Any of various malignant neoplasms characterized by the proliferation of anaplastic cells that tend to invade surrounding tissue and metastasize to new body sites.The pathological condition characterized by such growths.
can'cer·ous (kān'sər-əs) adj.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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American Heritage
Science Dictionary
tropic  (trŏp'ĭk) Pronunciation Key
|
| Tropic of Cancer
The parallel of latitude approximately 23°27' north. It forms the boundary between the Torrid and North Temperate zones. |
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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American Heritage
Cultural Dictionary
Tropic of Cancer definition
Imaginary line that circles the Earth about one-quarter of the way from the equator to the North Pole. The sun is directly overhead at the June solstice.
The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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