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Glite Dictionary
trigonometric function

trigonometric function

6.8
A rule that gives numbers for angles using two side lengths in a right triangle, like sine or cosine
  • noun
  • /ˌtrɪɡəˈnəʊmɛtrɪk ˈfʌŋkʃən/
  • Specialized
translation icon : función trigonométrica
  • To find the height of a building, we can use the trigonometric functions based on the measured angle of elevation.

Examples

  • Then over here we have applications of trigonometric functions, polar coordinates and vectors.

  • Physics instructors feel that a firm knowledge of the trigonometric functions and the ability to solve simultaneous equations are crucial to a student's success.

    Academic text (1994)

  • Is there a transformation that we can apply to all the trigonometric functions that gives them another function?

  • I may need to determine the strength of a material based on tension and compression by using trigonometric functions.

    Blog text (17)

  • But now you've created the trigonometric function which is simpler to work with.

  • So what I mean by that is, can we rewrite these six trigonometric functions using only trigonometric functions?

  • So numbers and literal symbols, then functions and graphs, and then the trigonometric functions, which is great.

  • Radiance is perfectly fine if you're using off the shelf, off the shelf trigonometric functions, tan, sine, whatever.

  • In geometry, the sine and cosine are the most commonly used trigonometric functions for calculating angles and distances.

  • Many engineering problems can be solved using trigonometric functions like tangent and cotangent to find unknown lengths.

Synonyms

circular function
vstrigonometric function
  • Specialized
7.9

A function like sine or cosine that gives the ratio of two sides in a right triangle for an angle

is the same concept but uses the standard mathematical term

Surface Forms

trigonometric function singular
trigonometric functions plural

Morphology

trigonometric + function

The compound is fully compositional: 'trigonometric' means pertaining to triangles and 'function' refers to a mathematical mapping, so together they denote a mathematical function related to triangles (e.g., sine, cosine). This follows regular English noun-noun/adj+noun composition and has clear cross-linguistic parallels, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents can infer the meaning.

Etymology

The name trigonometric function comes from old word parts trigon meaning 'triangle' and metric meaning 'measure'. These functions, like sine and cosine, come from measuring the sides and angles of a right triangle, so the name shows they link an angle to the lengths of the triangle's sides.