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DIAMETER
| Pronunciation (US): |  | (GB): | |
I. (noun)
Sense 1
Meaning:
The length of a straight line passing through the center of a circle and connecting two points on the circumference
Synonyms:
Classified under:
Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects
Hypernyms ("diameter" is a kind of...):
length (the linear extent in space from one end to the other; the longest dimension of something that is fixed in place)
Meronyms (parts of "diameter"):
r; radius (the length of a line segment between the center and circumference of a circle or sphere)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "diameter"):
bore; caliber; calibre; gauge (diameter of a tube or gun barrel)
windage (the space between the projectile of a smoothbore gun and the surface of the bore of the gun)
Derivation:
diametral; diametric; diametrical (related to or along a diameter)
Sense 2
Meaning:
A straight line connecting the center of a circle with two points on its perimeter (or the center of a sphere with two points on its surface)
Classified under:
Nouns denoting two and three dimensional shapes
Hypernyms ("diameter" is a kind of...):
straight line (a line traced by a point traveling in a constant direction; a line of zero curvature)
Derivation:
diametral; diametric; diametrical (related to or along a diameter)
Context examples:
By comparison, Vesta has an average diameter of 525 kilometers, and is the second most massive body in the belt.
(Dawn Spacecraft Begins Approach to Dwarf Planet Ceres, NASA)
The moons are estimated to be around 100-300 meters in diameter.
(Biggest Asteroid Ever Detected Flies Past Earth, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)
A human hair is about 60,000 nanometers in diameter, while a DNA molecule is between 2-12 nanometers wide.
(Nanometer, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)
The finest filamentous element of the cytoskeleton, having a diameter of about 5 nm and consisting primarily of actin.
(Actin Filament, NCI Thesaurus)
An internal radiation treatment technique in which a small diameter hollow metal sphere filled with a radioactive source is placed inside the uterus for the treatment of gynecological cancers.
(Mini Ovoid Brachytherapy, NCI Thesaurus)
The most significant factor associated with recurrence is the extent of surgical resection, with lesions greater than 5 cm in diameter carrying a markedly worse prognosis.
(Craniopharyngioma, NCI Thesaurus/Adapted from WHO)
A solitary benign tumor of MAST CELLS with a diameter ranging up to a few centimeters.
(Benign Mastocytoma, NLM, Medical Subject Headings)
A lesion found in the division of a vessel into at least two branches, each of which is 1.5 mm or greater in diameter.
(Coronary Vessel Bifurcation Lesion, NCI Thesaurus/ACC)
The flowers are yellow-white, 2.5-4 cm in diameter, with 7 to 8 petals.
(Camellia sinensis, NCI Thesaurus)
A stretching and opening of the cervical os during childbirth in preparation for delivery of the baby; the diameter is measured in centimeters.
(Cervical Dilation, NCI Thesaurus)
