Definition:Line/Straight Line Segment

Definition

A straight line segment is a line segment which is straight.

In the words of Euclid:

A straight line segment can be drawn joining any two points.

(The Elements: Book $\text{I}$: Postulates: Euclid's First Postulate)

Thus a definition for straight line which is frequently encountered is:

A straight line is the shortest distance between two points.

This is all very well but it assumes that the line in question terminates at two particular endpoints.

Also known as

In their definition of a straight line segment, some sources take straightness for granted, and refer to such as just a line segment.

Some sources refer to just a segment, but that term has multiple meanings.

Sources

• 1947: William H. McCrea: Analytical Geometry of Three Dimensions (2nd ed.) ... (previous) ... (next): Chapter $\text {I}$: Coordinate System: Directions: $\S 1$. Introductory: Nomenclature
• 1998: David Nelson: The Penguin Dictionary of Mathematics (2nd ed.) ... (previous) ... (next): line segment
• 2008: David Nelson: The Penguin Dictionary of Mathematics (4th ed.) ... (previous) ... (next): line segment
• 2014: Christopher Clapham and James Nicholson: The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Mathematics (5th ed.) ... (previous) ... (next): line segment