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Glite Dictionary
homothecy

homothecy

9.9
A change that makes a shape bigger or smaller from one center point
  • noun
  • /ˌhɒməˈθiːsi/
  • Specialized
: homotecia
  • A homothecy with a coefficient greater than one enlarges objects while preserving their shape.

Examples

  • Through a homothecy, every point in the plane is moved along a straight line radiating from the center.

  • A homothecy can be used to resize geometric figures.

  • The properties of a homothecy are fundamental in the study of similarities in geometry.

  • The concept of homothecy is fundamental in geometry.

  • A homothecy with a coefficient greater than one enlarges objects while preserving their shape.

  • The properties of a homothecy are fundamental in the study of geometric similarities.

  • Through a homothecy, every point is moved along a straight line from the center of scaling.

Synonyms

homothety
vshomothecy
  • Specialized
9.9

To change a shape by making it all bigger or all smaller from the same center

is the same concept but presented as an alternate spelling

Surface Forms

homothecy singular
homothecies plural

Morphology

homothecy = homothety (opaque) = homo + thecy

The form is an orthographic/terminological variant of 'homothety' and, aside from the combining form 'homo-', the remaining element is not a productive English morpheme, so learners cannot reliably infer the technical meaning.

Etymology

The word homothecy comes from Greek parts homo- meaning 'same' and -thecy meaning 'placing' or 'position', and the homo- part is the same as in homogeneous ('all the same'). So, a homothecy is a change that makes an object bigger or smaller from a single center while keeping its shape the same.