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Vinony

tangent

noun

  1. straight line touching a curve without crossing it
  2. trigonometric function
  3. new direction (for a conversation, motion, etc.)
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Wiktionary

Pronunciation: /ˈtæn.d͡ʒənt/

adj

Etymology: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *teh₂g- Proto-Italic *tangō Latin tangō Latin tangēns Latin tangentembor. English tangent Borrowed from Latin tangentem, the accusative of tangēns (“touching”) (in the phrase līnea tangēns (“a touching line”)), the present participle of the verb tangō (“touch”, verb), from Proto-Italic *tangō, from Proto-Indo-European *teh₂g- (“to touch”). Cognate with Old English þaccian (“to touch lightly, pat, stroke”). More at thack, thwack.

  1. Touching a curve at a single point but not crossing it at that point.
  2. Of a topic, only loosely related to a main topic.
  3. Straight; not horizontally curved.

    “The collision occurred on a two-mile stretch of tangent track.”

noun

Etymology: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *teh₂g- Proto-Italic *tangō Latin tangō Latin tangēns Latin tangentembor. English tangent Borrowed from Latin tangentem, the accusative of tangēns (“touching”) (in the phrase līnea tangēns (“a touching line”)), the present participle of the verb tangō (“touch”, verb), from Proto-Italic *tangō, from Proto-Indo-European *teh₂g- (“to touch”). Cognate with Old English þaccian (“to touch lightly, pat, stroke”). More at thack, thwack.

  1. A straight line touching a curve at a single point without crossing it there.

    “One feature of the body, which is constructed of pressed-steel members, is the contour of the sides. They are in the form of a continuous radius from the bottom side to the cant rail, and to enable flat glass windows to be fitted the side panels are pressed around the window opening, forming a tangent to the curved bodyside.”

  2. A function of an angle that gives the ratio of the sine to the cosine, in either the real or complex numbers. Symbols: tan, tg.
  3. A topic nearly unrelated to the main topic, but having a point in common with it.

    “I believe we went off onto a tangent when we started talking about monkeys on unicycles at his retirement party.”

    ““Uncle Barnaby was always father and mother to me,” Benson broke in; then after a pause his mind flew off at a tangent. “Is old Hannah all right—in the will, I mean?””

  4. A visual interaction between two or more lines or edges that creates a perceived relationship between them, often in a way that the artist did not intend.
  5. A small metal blade in a clavichord that strikes the strings to produce sound.