Determinant Meaning
/dɪˈtɜːmɪnənt/Definition, CEFR level B1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounA determining factor; an element that determines the nature of something.
nounA scalar that encodes certain characteristics of a given transformation matrix; the unique scalar function over square matrices which is distributive over matrix multiplication, multilinear in the rows and columns, and takes the value 1 for the unit matrix; abbreviated as: det.
Sentence Examples
International trade is a key determinant of prosperity.
Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms:
Antonyms:
None
CEFR Practice Quiz
The main ____ of success in this job is experience.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
International trade is a key ____ of prosperity.
Word Origin & History
Borrowed from French déterminant, equivalent to determine + -ant.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"The field of the social determinants of health is perhaps the most complex and challenging of all."
— 2003, Agis D. Tsouros, “Foreword”, in Richard Wilkinson, Michael Marmot, editors, Social Determinants of Health: The Solid Facts, 2nd edition, World Health Organization, page 5:
"The aim of this book has been to assess the determinants of capital punishment without taking a stand for or against the death penalty."
— 2004, Carsten Anckar, Determinants of the Death Penalty: A comparative study of the world, Taylor & Francis (Routledge), page 165:
"Using this definition, we derive the basic properties of a determinant that are useful in its evaluation. In particular, it is shown how the calculation of a determinant can be reduced to the calculation of determinants of lower order."
— 2009, Richard A. Brualdi, Dragoš Cvetkoviċ, A Combinatorial Approach to Matrix Theory and Its Applications, Taylor & Francis (CRC / Chapman & Hall), page 63:
"The following proposition shows a connection between negafibonacci numbers and the determinants of a family of tridiagonal matrices. […] Assuming that the determinant det(Gₖ) = f₋₍ₖ₊₁₎ for all k ≤ n, we aim to show that det(Gₙ₊₂) = f₋₍ₙ₊₃₎."
— 2019 June 24, Juan Triana, “Negafibonacci Numbers via Matrices”, in Bulletin of TICMI, volume 23, number 1, →ISSN, archived from the original on 13 Jul 2019, Negafibonacci numbers as tridiagonal matrix determinants, pages 3, 4:
Explore More B1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The main ____ of success in this job is experience.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
International trade is a key ____ of prosperity.