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vector

Pronunciation: /ˈvɛktə/

The English word “vector” has 13 meanings listed here.

noun

  1. A directed quantity, one with both magnitude and direction; the signed difference between two points.
  2. Any member of a (generalized) vector space.
  3. An ordered tuple, originally one representing a directed quantity, but by extension any one-dimensional matrix.
  4. A chosen course or direction for motion, as of an aircraft.
  5. A kind of dynamically resizable array.
  6. 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.
  7. A graphical representation using outlines; vector graphics.
  8. A DNA molecule used to carry genetic information from one organism into another.
  9. A person or entity that passes along an urban legend or other meme.
  10. A recurring psychosocial issue that stimulates growth and development in the personality.
  11. Forces, developments, phenomena, processes, systems, etc. which influence the trajectory of history (e.g. imperialism)

verb

  1. To set (particularly an aircraft) on a course toward a selected point.
  2. To redirect to a vector, or code entry point.

Etymology

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.

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Definitions are from Wiktionary, extracted by Kaikki.org, and are available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.