apothem

A student measures the apothem of a regular hexagon on a geometry worksheet.

Definition

1. Noun:
   • Mathematics — Geometry: "apothem" refers to the line segment from the center of a regular polygon perpendicular to one of its sides. It is the distance from the center to the midpoint of any side.

Usage Examples

• (The apothem is used as a key measurement in area formulas.)
• (The apothem is the perpendicular distance from the center to a side, which is less than the distance from the center to a vertex.)

Advanced Usage

• "apothem of a regular polygon": a specific geometric property used in formulas for area and side length.
  • The apothem can be found using the formula a = s / (2 * tan(π/n)), where s is the side length and n is the number of sides. (The apothem is derived from trigonometric relationships.)

Variants and Related Words

• Apothemal (adj): relating to or involving an apothem.
  • The apothemal distance is essential for calculating the polygon’s area. (Pertaining to the apothem.)

Synonyms

• Inradius: the radius of the inscribed circle of a polygon, which is equivalent to the apothem for regular polygons.
• Perpendicular distance from center to side: a descriptive phrase for the apothem.

Related Idioms

• No common idioms are associated with "apothem" as it is a technical term in geometry.