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Glite Dictionary
🏗️ Able to improve 📷 Can show images 📐 Can be flattened
developable

developable

7.2
A surface that can be opened out into a flat shape without stretching or tearing
  • adjective
  • /dɪˈvɛləpəbl/
  • Specialized
translation icon : desplegable
  • In mathematics class, we learned about developable shapes that can be flattened without distortion.

Examples

  • And Darboux was teaching this theorem of Euler that every developable surface has to be ruled.

  • The architect presented a model of a developable surface that could be constructed without any complex geometry.

  • The designer chose a developable material that could be easily shaped into various forms for the project.

Surface Forms

developable positive

Morphology

developable = develop (semi-transparent) = develop + able

Formally it's 'develop' + '-able', but the geometric meaning 'able to be unfolded/flattened' is a technical extension of 'develop' and is not obvious to general learners.

Etymology

The word developable comes from develop, originally 'to unfold', and the ending -able means 'able to'. So a developable surface in geometry is one you can 'unfold' into a flat shape without stretching or tearing.