Vector Meaning

/ˈvɛktə/
B2

Definition, CEFR level B2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.

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nounA directed quantity, one with both magnitude and direction; the signed difference between two points.

nounA directed quantity, one with both magnitude and direction; the signed difference between two points., Any member of a (generalized) vector space.

A vector is a unit vector if its norm is 1.
Every vector space has a basis.
What is the difference between raster and vector graphics?
Synonyms:
Antonyms:
None
CEFR Practice Quiz
Mosquitoes are the primary ____ for malaria, transmitting the parasite to humans.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
In mathematics, a ____ is a quantity that has both a magnitude and a specific and direction in space today.

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *weǵʰ- Proto-Indo-European *wéǵʰeti Proto-Italic *weɣō Latin vehō Proto-Indo-European *-tōr Proto-Italic *-tōr Latin -tor Latin vectorlbor. English vector Learned borrowing from Latin vector (“carrier, transporter”), from vehō (“to carry, transport, bear”), also ultimately the root of English vehicle. The “person or entity that passes along an urban legend or other meme” sense derives from the disease sense. The mathematics sense was coined by Irish mathematician and astronomer William Rowan Hamilton in 1846.

"As examples of vector quantities may be mentioned the distance between any two given points, a velocity, a force, an acceleration, angular velocity, intensity of magnetization flux of heat." — 1914, The New Student's Reference Work:
"A row vector is a matrix whose M dimension is 1. In fact, a row vector is a matrix consisting of a single row, and a column vector a matrix consisting of a single column." — 2003 February 26, Julio Sanchez, Maria P. Canton, The PC Graphics Handbook, CRC Press, →ISBN, page 62:
"Color is stored as a vector attribute (R, G, B)." — 2011 March 8, Lee Lanier, Advanced Maya Texturing and Lighting, John Wiley & Sons, →ISBN, page 97:
"GPU cores are essentially vector-processing units, capable of applying the same instruction on a large collection of operands." — 2022 February 9, Gerassimos Barlas, Multicore and GPU Programming: An Integrated Approach, Morgan Kaufmann, →ISBN, page 398:
"I was told to fly out on a vector of 100 degrees to meet a strong plot of aircraft 30 miles from the coast." — 2017, Mark Chambers, Tony Holmes, Nakajima B5N ‘Kate’ and B6N ‘Jill’ Units, page 32:

Explore More B2 Vocabulary Words

CEFR Practice Quiz
Mosquitoes are the primary ____ for malaria, transmitting the parasite to humans.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
In mathematics, a ____ is a quantity that has both a magnitude and a specific and direction in space today.

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