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arc

Pronunciation: /ɑːk/

The English word “arc” has 13 meanings listed here.

noun

  1. That part of a circle which a heavenly body appears to pass through as it moves above and below the horizon.
  2. A continuous part of the circumference of a circle (circular arc) or of another curve.
  3. A curve, in general.
  4. A band contained within parallel curves, or something of that shape.
  5. A flow of current across an insulating medium; especially a hot, luminous discharge either between two electrodes or as lightning.
  6. A period or phase in a person's life.
  7. A continuous mapping from a real interval (typically [0, 1]) into a space.
  8. A directed edge.
  9. The three-point line.
  10. An arclight.

verb

  1. To move following a curved path.
  2. To shape into an arc; to hold in the form of an arc.
  3. To form an electrical arc.

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English ark, from Old French arc, from Latin arcus (“a bow, arc, arch”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂erkʷos (“bow, arrow”). Doublet of arch, arco, and arrow.

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Definitions are from Wiktionary, extracted by Kaikki.org, and are available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.