Arctangent vs. Tangent

Arctangentnoun

(trigonometry) Any of several single-valued or multivalued functions that are inverses of the tangent function. Symbol: arctan, tan-1

Tangentnoun

(differential geometry) A straight line touching a curve at a single point without crossing it there.

Tangentnoun

(math) A function of an angle that gives the ratio of the sine to the cosine, in either the real or complex numbers. Symbols: tan, tg.

Tangentnoun

A topic nearly unrelated to the main topic, but having a point in common with it.

Tangentnoun

(music) A small metal blade in a clavichord that strikes the strings to produce sound.

Tangentadjective

(geometry) Touching a curve at a single point but not crossing it at that point.

Tangentadjective

Of a topic, only loosely related to a main topic.

Tangentadjective

Straight; not horizontally curved.

Tangentnoun

A tangent line curve, or surface; specifically, that portion of the straight line tangent to a curve that is between the point of tangency and a given line, the given line being, for example, the axis of abscissas, or a radius of a circle produced. See Trigonometrical function, under Function.

Tangentadjective

Touching; touching at a single point

Tangentnoun

a straight line or plane that touches a curve or curved surface at a point but does not intersect it at that point

Tangentnoun

ratio of the opposite to the adjacent side of a right-angled triangle

Tangent

In geometry, the tangent line (or simply tangent) to a plane curve at a given point is the straight line that the curve at that point. Leibniz defined it as the line through a pair of infinitely close points on the curve.