abacus
An oriental counting device and calculator.
acute angle
An angle that is less than 90 degrees
addition
The process of adding two numbers to obtain their sum.
angle
The figure formed by two line segments that extend from a given point.
arc
A portion of a circle.
area
The amount of surface contained by a figure.
arithmetic mean / average
The arithmetic mean of n numbers is the sum of the numbers divided by n.
bar graph
A type of chart used to compare data in which the length of a bar represents the size of the
data.
biquadratic equation
A polynomial equation of the 4th degree.
bisect
to cut in half.
Calculator
A machine for performing calculations.
cardinal number
A number that indicates the quantity but not the order of things.
chord
The line joining two points on a curve is called a chord.
circle
The set of points equidistant from a given point (the center).
circular cone
A cone whose base is a circle.
circumference
The boundary of a circle.
common denominator
A multiple shared by the denominators of two or more fractions.
complementary angles
Two angles whose sum is 90o.
compute
To solve problems that use numbers.
concave
curved from the inside.
cone
A three-dimensional solid that rises from a circular base to a single point at the top.
congruent figures
two geometric figures that are identical in size and shape.
coordinates
Numbers that determine the position of a point.
cube
A solid figure bounded by 6 congruent squares.
cubic equation
A polynomial equation of degree 3.
cylinder
A rounded three-dimensional solid that has a flat circular face at each end.
data
Facts that have been collected but not yet interpreted.
decagon
A polygon with 10 sides.
decimal point
The period in a deimal number separating the integer part from the fractional part.
denominator
In the fraction the number on the bottom is the denominator.
diagonal
In a polygon, the line segment joining a vertex with another (non-adjacent) vertex is called a
diagonal.
diameter
The longest chord of a figure. In a circle, a diameter is a chord that passes through the
center of the circle.
difference
The difference between two numbers is what you get when you subtract one from the other.
digit
In the decimal system, one of the numbers 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9.
dimension
The indication of how far something extends in space.
disc
A circle together with its interior.
division
A basic arithmetical operation determining how many times one quantity is contained within
another.
dodecagon
A polygon with 12 sides.
dodecahedron
A solid figure with 12 faces A regular dodecahedron is a regular polyhedron with 12 faces.
Each face is a regular pentagon.
equation
A statement that two expressions are equal to each other.
equilateral polygon
A polygon all of whose sides are equal.
equilateral triangle
A triangle with three equal sides.
estimate
A rough guess at the value of a number.
even number
An integer that is divisible by 2.
factor (noun)
An exact divisor of a number. This 7 is a factor of 28.
factor (verb)
To find the factors of a number.
Fibonacci number
A member of the sequence 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5,... where each number is the sum of the previous
two numbers.
fraction
An expression of the form a/b – ie 4/5.
frequency
The number of times a value occurs in some time interval.
geometry
The branch of mathematics that deals with the nature of space and the size, shape, and
other properties of figures as well as the transformations that preserve these properties.
graph
A graph is a set of points (called vertices) and a set of lines (called edges) joinging these
vertices.
hectare
A unit of measurement in the metric system equal to 10,000 square meters (approximately
2.47 acres).
heptagon
A polygon with 7 sides.
hexagon
A polygoin with 6 sides.
hexagonal prism
A prism with a hexagonal base.
hexahedron
A polyhedron having 6 faces. The cube is a regular hexahedron.
horizontal line
A line parallel to the earth's surface or the bottom of a page.
hypotenuse
The longest side of a right triangle.
icosahedron
A polyhedron with 20 faces.
inequality
The statement that one quantity is less than (or greater than) another.
infinite
becoming large beyond bound; never ending.
infinity
A reference to a quantity larger than any specific integer.
integer
A whole number ..., -3, -2, -1, 0, 1, 2, 3, ...
intersect
Two figures are said to intersect if they meet or cross each other.
isosceles triangle
A triangle with two equal sides.
kilometer
A unit of length equal to 1,000 meters.
kite
A quadrilateral which has two pairs of adjacent sides equal.
knot
a unit of speed in navigation equal to one nautical mile per hour.
latitude
The angular distance of a point on the Earth from the equator, measured along the meridian
through that point.
length
The straight line distance between two points.
line
A geometrical figure that has length but no width.
line graph
A chart that shows data by means of points connected by lines.
line segment
The part of a line between two given distinct points on that line (including the two points).
lowest common denominator
The smallest number that is exactly divisible by each denominator of a set of fractions.
lowest common denominator
The smallest multiple shared by the denominators of a set of fractions.
lowest terms
A fraction is said to be in lowest terms if its numerator and denominator have no common
factor.
maximum
The largest of a set of values.
median
When a set of numbers is ordered from smallest to largest, the median number is the one in
the middle of the list.
minimum
The smallest of a set of values.
mode
The most frequently occurring value in a sequence of numbers.
natural number
Any one of the numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, ... .
negative number
A number smaller than 0.
number line
A line on which each point represents a real number.
numeral
A symbol that stands for a number.
numerator
In the fraction the number on the top is the numerator.
oblique angle
an angle that is not 90o
obtuse angle
an angle larger than 90o but smaller than 180o
octagon
A polygon with 8 sides.
octahedron
A polyhedron with 8 faces.
odd number
An integer that is not divisible by 2.
ordinal number
A number indicating the order of a thing in a series: first, second…
origin
The point on a graph with coordinates (0,0).
palindrome
A positive integer whose digits read the same forward and backwards.
parallel
Two lines in the plane are said to be parallel if they do not meet.
parallelogram
A quadrilateral whose opposite sides are parallel.
parentheses
The symbols ( and ) used for grouping expressions.
pentagon
A polygon with 5 sides.
percent
A way of expressing a number as a fraction out of 100.
perimeter
The distance around the edge of a multisided figure.
perpendicular
Two straight lines are said to be perpendicular if they meet at right angles.
pi
The ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter.
pie chart
A type of chart in which a circle is divided up into portions in which the area of each portion
represents the size of the data.
place value
Within a number, each digit is given a place value depending on its location within the
number.
plane
A two-dimensional area in geometry.
point
In geometry, a point represents a position, but has no size.
polygon
A plane figure with many sides.
positive number
A number larger than 0.
prime
A prime number is an integer larger than 1 whose only positive divisors are 1 and itself.
probability
The chance that a particular event will happen.
product
The result of multiplying two numbers.
proportion
A comparison of ratios.
pyramid
A three-dimensional solid whose base is a polygon and whose sides are triangles that come
to a point at the top.
quadrant
Any one of the four portions of the plane into which the plane is divided by the coordinate
axes.
quadrilateral
A geometric figure with four sides.
quotient
The result of a division.
radius
The length of a stright line drown from the center of a circle to a point on its circumference.
range
The set of values taken on by a function.
ratio
quotient of two numbers.
rectangle
A quadrilateral with 4 right angles.
reflex angle
An angle between 180o and 360o.
remainder
The number left over when one number is divided by another.
rhombus
A parallelogram with four equal sides.
right angle
an angle formed by two perpendicular lines; a 90o angle.
right triangle
A triangle that contains a right angle.
roman numerals
A system of numeration used by the ancient Romans.
rounding
The process of approximating a number to a nearby one.
scalene triangle
A triangle with unequal sides.
set
A collection of objects.
solid
A three-dimensional figure.
square
A quadrilateral with 4 equal sides and 4 right angles.
square number
A number formed when multiplying one number by itself – ie 25 (5x5).
square root
The number x is said to be a square root of y if x2 = y.
subtraction
A basic operation of arithemtic in which you take away one number from another.
sum
The result of adding two or more numbers.
surface area
The measure of a surface of a three-dimensional solid indicating how large it is.
tetrahedron
A polyhedron with four faces.
torus
A geometric solid in the shape of a donut.
trapezium
A quadrilateral in which no sides are parallel.
trapezoid
A quadrilateral in which two sides are parallel.
triangle
A geometric figure with three sides.
truncated pyramid
A section of a pyramid between its base and a plane parallel to the base.
unit cube
A cube with edge length 1.
unit fraction
A fraction whose numerator is 1.
unit square
A unit square is a square of side length 1.
variable
A symbol whose value can change.
velocity
The rate of change of position.
vertical line
A line that runs up and down and is perpendicular to a horizontal line.
volume
The measure of spce occupied by a solid body.
X
Roman numeral for 10.
x-axis
The horizontal axis in the plane.
x-intercept
The point at which a line crosses the x-axis.
y-axis
The vertical axis in the plane.
y-intercept
The point at which a line crosses the y-axis.
yard
A measure of length equal to 3 feet.
year
A measure of time equal to the period of one revolution of the earth about the sun.
Approximately equal to 365 days.
zero
0