asymptote means A straight line which a curve approaches arbitrarily closely as it goes to infinity. The limit of the curve; its tangent "at infinity". It carries an Arena rating of 1925, earned across 24 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, asymptote ranks #28 of 17,124 for Most Sublime Words, #379 of 17,138 for Most Incisive Words, #759 of 17,134 for Most Malleable Words, #824 of 17,126 for Most Elegant Words.
asymptote is pronounced /ˈæsɪmptəʊ̯t/.
Why “asymptote” is a great word
A straight line that a curve approaches arbitrarily closely but never meets, even at infinity. From Ancient Greek ἀσύμπτωτος (asúmptōtos, “not falling together”), from ἀ- (a-, “not”) + σύν (sún, “together”) + πτωτός (ptōtós, “fallen”), first attested in English circa 1650. Unlike a tangent, which touches a curve at a single, definitive point, or a limit, which is the abstract numerical value being approached, the asymptote is the perpetual, physical nearness. It is the horizon that recedes as you walk, the temperature of a cooling object approaching room warmth, the sound of a closing door dying into silence—the beautiful geometry of forever almost, but never quite, arriving.
Etymology
Circa 1650, from Ancient Greek ἀσύμπτωτη (asúmptōtē), the feminine of Apollonius Pergaeus' (circa 200 BC) Ancient Greek adjective ἀσύμπτωτος (asúmptōtos, “not falling together”), from ἀ- (a-, “not”) + συν- (sun-, “together”) + πτωτός (ptōtós, “fallen”). See also a-, syn-, -ote.
noun
- A straight line which a curve approaches arbitrarily closely as it goes to infinity. The limit of the curve; its tangent "at infinity".
- Anything which comes near to but never meets something else.e.g.“Language, in relation to thought, must ever be regarded as an asymptote.” — 1860, Frederic William Farrar, An Essay on the Origin of Language, page 117:
verb
- To approach, but never quite touch, a straight line, as something goes to infinity.e.g.“2006: Neil deGrasse Tyson, The Perimeter of Ignorance
As you become more scientific, yes, the religiosity drops off, but it asymptotes.”
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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