Tangent
WordNet
noun
(1) Ratio of the opposite to the adjacent side of a right-angled triangle
(2) A straight line or plane that touches a curve or curved surface at a point but does not intersect it at that point
WiktionaryText
English
Etymology
From , the accusative of the present participle of the verb . From the the phrase .
Noun
- A straight line touching a curve at a single point without crossing it there.
- In a right triangle, the ratio of the length of the side opposite the angle to the length of the side adjacent to the angle. Symbols: tan, tg
- 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.
- 2009: Stuart Heritage, Hecklerspray, Friday the 22nd of May in 2009 at 1 o’clock p.m., “Jon & Kate Latest: People You Don’t Know Do Crap You Don’t Care About”
- Jon & Kate Plus 8 is a show based on two facts: 1) Jon and Kate Gosselin have eight children, and 2) the word ‘Kate’ rhymes with the word ‘eight’. One suspects that if Kate were ever to have another child, a shady network executive would urge her to put it in a binbag with a brick and drop it down a well. But this is just a horrifying tangent.
- A small metal blade by which a clavichord produces sound.
Adjective
- Touching a curve at a single point but not crossing it at that point.
- Of a topic, only loosely related to a main topic.