Adjacent Words

Gnomon definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

GNO'MON, n. no'mon. [Gr. an index, to know.]
1. In dialling, the style or pin, which by its shadow shows the hour of the day. It represents the axis of the earth.
2. In astronomy, a style erected perpendicular to the horizon, in order to find the altitude of the sun.
3. The gnomon of a globe, is the index of the hour-circle.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: indicator provided by the stationary arm whose shadow indicates the time on the sundial

Merriam Webster's

noun Etymology: Latin, from Greek gn?m?n interpreter, pointer on a sundial, from gign?skein Date: 1546 1. an object that by the position or length of its shadow serves as an indicator especially of the hour of the day: as a. the pin of a sundial b. a column or shaft erected perpendicular to the horizon 2. the remainder of a parallelogram after the removal of a similar parallelogram containing one of its corners

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. 1 the rod or pin etc. on a sundial that shows the time by the position of its shadow. 2 Geom. the part of a parallelogram left when a similar parallelogram has been taken from its corner. 3 Astron. a column etc. used in observing the sun's meridian altitude. Derivatives: gnomonic adj. Etymology: F or L gnomon f. Gk gnomon indicator etc. f. gignosko know

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Gnomon Gno"mon, n. [L. gnomon, Gr. ? one that knows, the index of a sundial. See Gnome.] 1. (Dialing) The style or pin, which by its shadow, shows the hour of the day. It is usually set parallel to the earth's axis. 2. (Astron.) A style or column erected perpendicularly to the horizon, formerly used in astronomocal observations. Its principal use was to find the altitude of the sun by measuring the length of its shadow. 3. (Geom.) The space included between the boundary lines of two similar parallelograms, the one within the other, with an angle in common; as, the gnomon bcdefg of the parallelograms ac and af. The parallelogram bf is the complement of the parallelogram df. 4. The index of the hour circle of a globe.

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

n. Style (of a dial).