Definition:Tangential Direction
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Definition
Let $\CC$ be a curve in space along which a particle $P$ may be imagined to be moving
The tangential direction of $P$ at a point on $\CC$ is the direction of travel of $P$ along a tangent to $\CC$ at that point.
Also see
- Results about tangential direction can be found here.
Linguistic Note
The word tangent comes from the Latin tangentus that which is touching, the present participle of tangere to touch.
It is pronounced with a soft g: tan-jent.
The adjectival form of tangent is tangential, pronounced tan-jen-shal.
Sources
- 1998: David Nelson: The Penguin Dictionary of Mathematics (2nd ed.) ... (previous) ... (next): acceleration
- 2008: David Nelson: The Penguin Dictionary of Mathematics (4th ed.) ... (previous) ... (next): acceleration