first degree

31 6.7

An equation or polynomial with no power higher than one

noun
/fɜrst dɪˈɡri/

Specialized

: primer grado

The formula for the first degree equation is straightforward, making it easy to solve for the variable.
first-degree murder
first-degree murder charges

Examples

So it'll compute a fit using the first degree and predict some values for the curve.
And now essentially we have X to the first power, which is of course a first degree power function.
Now second degree gets a little messy, so let me do a first degree example example.
Before selling antiques, he studied to get his first degree in poultry science.

Blog text (1)
In mathematics, a first degree polynomial is one where the highest exponent of the variable is one.
When graphing a first degree function, the result is always a straight line.

Surface Forms

first degree singular

first degrees plural

Morphology

first + degree

The meaning 'degree of one' is directly and compositionally derived from 'first' (meaning one/primary) combined with 'degree' (the exponent of a polynomial), so the overall sense follows straightforward adjective + noun semantics. This literal, cross-linguistically common formation is predictable for learners who know both constituent words, making it immediately comprehensible at B1.

Etymology

First degree comes from older math use where degree meant a 'step' or a 'power' and first simply means 'one'. So a 'first degree' equation has the highest power of one, like a single step, and that's why it means a simple or linear equation today.