tangent

• Nom désignant une ligne droite ou un plan qui touche une courbe ou une surface courbe en un seul point sans la couper, ou le rapport trigonométrique du côté opposé au côté adjacent dans un triangle rectangle.

A noun referring to a straight line or plane that touches a curve or curved surface at a single point without crossing it, or the trigonometric ratio of the opposite side to the adjacent side in a right-angled triangle.

1. Geometry lineB2formalscientific

   A straight line that touches a curve or curved surface at a single point without crossing it.

   tangente (géométrie)

   • The tangent to the circle at point P is perpendicular to the radius.
   • We calculated the slope of the tangent line using calculus.
   • The graph shows a tangent touching the curve at exactly one point.

2. Trigonometric ratioB2formalscientific

   In a right-angled triangle, the ratio of the length of the side opposite an angle to the length of the adjacent side.

   Tangente (trigonométrie)

   • The tangent of 45 degrees is equal to 1.
   • Use the tangent function to find the height of the building.
   • The calculator gives the tangent of the angle as 0.577.