vector

English

WOTD – 3 June 2006

Etymology

From Latin vector (“carrier, transporter”), from vehō (“I carry, I transport, I bear”).

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 William Rowan Hamilton in 1846.

Pronunciation

• Hyphenation: vec‧tor
• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈvɛktə/
• (US) enPR: vĕk'tər, IPA^(key): /ˈvɛktɚ/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Audio (AU)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛktə(ɹ)

Noun

vector (plural vectors)

1. (mathematics) A directed quantity, one with both magnitude and direction; the signed difference between two points.

   Hypernym: tensor

   • 1914, The New Student's Reference Work:

     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.

2. (mathematics) An ordered tuple representing a directed quantity or the signed difference between two points.
3. (mathematics) Any member of a (generalized) vector space.

   The vectors in ${\mathbb {Q} }[X]$ are the single-variable polynomials with rational coefficients: one is $\textstyle x^{42}+{\frac {1}{137}}x-1$.

4. (aviation) A chosen course or direction for motion, as of an aircraft.
6. (epidemiology) A carrier of a disease-causing agent.
7. (by extension, sociology) A person or entity that passes along an urban legend or other meme.
   • 2020 October 12, Andrew Marantz, “Why Facebook Can’t Fix Itself”, in The New Yorker‎^[1]:

     These days, their primary job is to insist that Facebook is a fun place to share baby photos and sell old couches, not a vector for hate speech, misinformation, and violent extremist propaganda.

8. (psychology) A recurring psychosocial issue that stimulates growth and development in the personality.
9. The way in which the eyes are drawn across the visual text. The trail that a book cover can encourage the eyes to follow from certain objects to others.(Can we add an example for this sense?)
10. (computing, operating systems) A memory address containing the address of a code entry point, usually one which is part of a table and often one that is dereferenced and jumped to during the execution of an interrupt.
11. (programming) A one-dimensional array.
    • 2004, Jesse Liberty, Bradley L. Jones, Sams Teach Yourself C++ in 21 Days (page 694)

      To create a vector of students in a class, you will want the vector to be large enough […]

12. (computer graphics, attributive) A graphical representation using outlines; vector graphics.

    Coordinate term: raster

    a vector image

    vector graphics

13. (molecular biology) A DNA molecule used to carry genetic information from one organism into another.

Usage notes

• (programming): The term vector is used loosely when the indices are not (either positive or non-negative) integers.

Hyponyms

Hyponyms

• axial vector
• Burgers vector
• change vector
• column vector
• Darboux vector
• displacement vector
• Euclidean vector

• gradient vector
• gyrovector
• Laplace–Runge–Lenz vector
• normal vector
• null vector
• position vector
• Poynting vector
• poxvector

• random vector
• row vector
• spin vector (spinor)
• tangent vector
• unit vector
• wave vector

Derived terms

• axial vector
• pseudovector
• vector algebra
• vector-borne
• vector field
• vector function
• vectorial
• vectorially
• vectorize
• vector product
• vector space
• vector verb

 

Translations

directed quantity

• Afrikaans: wektor
• Arabic: مُتَّجِهٌ‎ m (muttajihun), مُتَّجِهاتٌ‎ m pl (muttajihātun), شُعاعٌ‎ m (šuʿāʿun), أَشِعَّةٌ‎ m pl (ʾašiʿʿatun)
• Catalan: vector m
• Chinese:

  Cantonese: 向量 (hoeng³ loeng⁶)

  Mandarin: 向量 (zh) (xiàngliàng), 矢量 (zh) (shǐliàng)

• Czech: vektor (cs) m
• Danish: vektor c
• Dutch: vector (nl) m
• Esperanto: vektoro
• Finnish: vektori (fi)
• French: vecteur (fr) m
• Galician: vector m
• Georgian: ვექტორი (vekṭori)
• German: Vektor (de) m
• Greek: διάνυσμα (el) n (diánysma)
• Hebrew: וקטור‎ (he) m (vektór)
• Hindi: सदिश f (sadiś)
• Hungarian: vektor (hu)
• Icelandic: vigur
• Ido: vektoro (io)
• Irish: veicteoir m
• Italian: vettore (it) m
• Japanese: ベクトル (ja) (bekutoru)

• Korean: 벡터 (bekteo)
• Latvian: vektors, vektōrs m
• Lithuanian: vektorius (lt) m
• Malay: vektor
• Marathi: सदिश (sadiś)
• Mongolian: чиглэл (mn) (chiglel)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: vektor (no) m

  Nynorsk: vektor m

• Persian: بردار‎ (fa)
• Polish: wektor (pl) m
• Portuguese: vector (pt) m
• Romanian: vector (ro) m
• Russian: ве́ктор (ru) m (véktor)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: вектор m

  Roman: vektor (sh) m

• Slovene: vektor (sl) m
• Spanish: vector (es) m
• Swedish: vektor (sv) c
• Tagalog: tugano, bektor
• Tamil: திசையன் (ta) (ticaiyaṉ)
• Turkish: vektör (tr), yöney (tr)
• Vietnamese: đại lượng có hướng, đại lượng hữu hướng, hướng lượng

aviation: chosen course or direction for motion

• Catalan: vector m
• Dutch: koers (nl) f
• Finnish: kurssi (fi)
• Galician: vector m
• Georgian: კურსი (ḳursi), მიმართულება (mimartuleba)
• Irish: veicteoir m

• Malay: vektor
• Portuguese: vector (pt) m
• Russian: курс (ru) m (kurs), направле́ние (ru) n (napravlénije)
• Spanish: vector (es) m
• Swedish: vektor (sv) c

carrier of a disease-causing agent

• Arabic: ناقِلٌ‎ m (nāqilun), نَواقِلُ‎ m pl (nawāqilu)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 病媒

• Czech: přenašeč (cs) m
• Finnish: taudinkantaja, tartunnanlevittäjä (fi)
• French: vecteur (fr)
• Georgian: ვექტორი (vekṭori)
• Greek: φορέας (el) m (foréas)
• Hindi: रोगवाहक (hi) m (rogvāhak)
• Hungarian: bacilusgazda (hu)
• Irish: veicteoir m
• Italian: vettore (it)

• Japanese: ベクター (bekutā)
• Malay: vektor
• Maori: kaitītaritari
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: vektor (no) m

  Nynorsk: vektor m

• Polish: przenosiciel m, wektor (pl) m
• Portuguese: vetor (pt)
• Russian: перено́счик (ru) m (perenósčik)
• Spanish: vector (es) m

sociology: person or entity that passes along an urban legend or other meme

• Finnish: levittäjä

recurring psychosocial issue that stimulates growth in the personality

way in which the eyes are drawn across the visual text

memory address containing the address of a code entry point

• Polish: wektor (pl) m

programming: one-dimensional array

• Czech: vektor (cs) m
• Finnish: vektori (fi)
• Galician: vector m
• Georgian: ვექტორი (vekṭori)
• Hebrew: וקטור‎ (he) m (vektór)
• Korean: 벡터 (bekteo)

• Latvian: vektors m
• Malay: vektor
• Portuguese: vetor (pt) m
• Romanian: vector (ro) m
• Russian: ве́ктор (ru) m (véktor), масси́в (ru) m (massív)
• Spanish: vector (es) m
• Vietnamese: mảng một chiều

DNA molecule used to carry genetic information from one organism into another

• Catalan: vector
• Czech: vektor (cs) m
• Finnish: vektori (fi)
• Irish: veicteoir m

• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: vektor (no) m

  Nynorsk: vektor m

Verb

vector (third-person singular simple present vectors, present participle vectoring, simple past and past participle vectored)

1. To set (particularly an aircraft) on a course toward a selected point.
   • 1994, Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick, Tendencies:

     […] if love is vectored toward an object and Elinor's here flies toward Marianne, Marianne's in turn toward Willoughby.

2. (computing) To redirect to a vector, or code entry point.

Derived terms

• thrust vectoring

Translations

to set (particularly an aircraft) on a course toward a selected point

• Finnish: asettaa kurssi

• Georgian: მიმართვა (mimartva), წარმართვა (c̣armartva), მიმართულების მიცემა (mimartulebis micema)

References

• The New Oxford Dictionary of English

Anagrams

• Covert, corvet, covert

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Catalan

Noun

vector m (plural vectors)

1. vector

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Dutch

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin vector.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈvɛk.tɔr/

• Audio

  (file)

• Hyphenation: vec‧tor
• Rhymes: -ɛktɔr

Noun

vector m (plural vectoren, diminutive vectortje n)

1. (mathematics) vector, an element of a vector space

Derived terms

• eenheidsvector
• eigenvector
• normaalvector
• nulvector
• raakvector
• vectoralgebra
• vectoranalyse
• vectordifferentiatie
• vectorlimiet
• vectorproduct
• vectorruimte
• vectorvermenigvuldiging

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Galician

Etymology

From Latin vector

Noun

vector m (plural vectores)

1. vector

Derived terms

• vectorial
• vectorizar
• vectorización
• vector propio
• vector unitario

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Latin

Etymology

vehō +‎ -tor

Pronunciation

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /ˈu̯ek.tor/, [ˈu̯ɛkt̪ɔr]
• (Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /ˈvek.tor/, [ˈvɛkt̪ɔr]

Noun

vector m (genitive vectōris); third declension

1. bearer, carrier
2. passenger

Declension

Third-declension noun.

Case	Singular	Plural
Nominative	vector	vectōrēs
Genitive	vectōris	vectōrum
Dative	vectōrī	vectōribus
Accusative	vectōrem	vectōrēs
Ablative	vectōre	vectōribus
Vocative	vector	vectōrēs

Related terms

• vectīgal

Descendants

• → English: vector

Verb

vector

1. first-person singular present passive indicative of vectō

References

• vector in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• vector in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• Carl Meißner; Henry William Auden (1894) Latin Phrase-Book‎^[2], London: Macmillan and Co.
  • passengers: vectores (Phil. 7. 9. 27)
    

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Portuguese

Noun

vector m (plural vectores)

1. Superseded spelling of vetor. (Superseded in Brazil by the 1943 spelling reform and by the Orthographic Agreement of 1990 elsewhere. Still used in countries where the agreement hasn’t come into effect and as an alternative spelling in Portugal.)

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Romanian

Etymology

From French vecteur.

Noun

vector m (plural vectori)

1. vector

Declension

Declension of vector

	singular		plural
	indefinite articulation	definite articulation	indefinite articulation	definite articulation
nominative/accusative	(un) vector	vectorul	(niște) vectori	vectorii
genitive/dative	(unui) vector	vectorului	(unor) vectori	vectorilor
vocative	vectorule		vectorilor

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Spanish

Etymology

From Latin vector.

Noun

vector m (plural vectores)

1. vector

Derived terms

• autovector
• eigenvector
• vectorial
• vectorizar
• vectorización
• vector propio
• vector unitario

Further reading

• “vector” in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014.