Parabola

[pə'ræb(ə)lə] or [pə'ræbələ]

Definition

(noun.) a plane curve formed by the intersection of a right circular cone and a plane parallel to an element of the curve.

Typist: Sanford--From WordNet

Definition

(n.) A kind of curve; one of the conic sections formed by the intersection of the surface of a cone with a plane parallel to one of its sides. It is a curve, any point of which is equally distant from a fixed point, called the focus, and a fixed straight line, called the directrix. See Focus.

(n.) One of a group of curves defined by the equation y = axn where n is a positive whole number or a positive fraction. For the cubical parabola n = 3; for the semicubical parabola n = /. See under Cubical, and Semicubical. The parabolas have infinite branches, but no rectilineal asymptotes.

Typed by Keller

Definition

n. (geom.) a curve or conic section formed by cutting a cone with a plane parallel to its slope (for illustration see Cone).—adjs. Parabol′ic; Parabol′iform.—n. Parab′oloid the solid which would be generated by the rotation of a parabola about its principal axis.

Editor: Sallust