latitude means the angular distance north or south from a planet's equator, measured along the meridian of that particular point. It carries an Arena rating of 1638, earned across 9 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, latitude ranks #1,057 of 17,126 for Most Elegant Words, #1,572 of 17,124 for Most Sublime Words, #2,525 of 17,130 for Most Beautiful Words, #3,061 of 17,143 for Best Fossil-Poetry Words.
latitude is pronounced /ˈlætɪtjuːd/.
Why “latitude” is a great word
The angular distance north or south of the earth's equator, measured in degrees, and by extension, the scope for freedom of action or thought. From Middle English, borrowed from Old French latitude, from Latin lātitūdō ('breadth, width, latitude'), from lātus ('broad, wide'). Unlike longitude, which fixes a point along the east-west axis, or leeway, which implies a sanctioned margin for error, latitude suggests a more generous and conceptual expanse. It is the sailor's calculation by the North Star, the particular slant of winter light that changes as you travel north, and the discretion granted to a judge who reads the law as spacious ground—the measured freedom that makes both navigation and human understanding possible.
Etymology
Borrowed into Middle English from Old French latitude, from Latin lātitūdō (“breadth, width, latitude”), from lātus (“broad, wide”), from older stlātus. Possibly related with lateral, though this is uncertain.
noun
- The angular distance north or south from a planet's equator, measured along the meridian of that particular point.e.g.“The oat is hardier than wheat, and ripens in higher latitudes.” — 1880, Arthur Herbert Church, Food: Some Account of Its Sources, Constituents and Uses, London: Chapman and Hall, page 72:
- An imaginary line (in the form of a circumference) around a planet running parallel to the planet's equator.e.g.“snow showers in the northerly latitudes”
- The relative freedom from restrictions; scope to do something.e.g.“His parents gave him a great deal of latitude.”
- The angular distance of a heavenly body from the ecliptic.
- The extent to which a light-sensitive material can be over- or underexposed and still achieve an acceptable result.
- Extent or scope; e.g. breadth, width or amplitude.
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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