Definition:Minute
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Definition
Minute of Time
The minute is a derived unit of time.
- $1$ minute $= 60$ seconds.
Minute of Arc
The minute (of arc) is a measurement of plane angles, symbolized by $'$.
| \(\ds \) | \(\) | \(\ds 1\) | minute | |||||||||||
| \(\ds \) | \(=\) | \(\ds 60\) | seconds | |||||||||||
| \(\ds \) | \(=\) | \(\ds \dfrac 1 {60}\) | degree of arc (by definition) |
Linguistic Note
The word minute, in the context of the measurement both of time and of angle, derives from its initial definition as a minute part of an hour or of a degree of arc.
In this context the word minute (meaning: the aggregation of $60$ seconds) is pronounced min-it.
The word minute (as used in the phrase minute part) is pronounced my-nyoot and means small.
So the fact that the two words are spelt identically is not a coincidence.