linear
English · Español · Deutsch · Português · Română · Thesaurus
AI In plain words
Writing a short explanation…
Written by a house AI from the entry below, in your language. The entry itself is the source.
linear¹
- /ˈlɪn.i.ə/ UK
- /ˈlɪn.i.əɹ/ US
- /liː.nɪ.jə(ɾ)/ India
- /liːn.jə(ɾ)/ India
Rhymes with -ɪniə(ɹ)
Where it comes from
Borrowed from Latin līneāris, from līnea (“line”) + -āris (adjectival suffix), equivalent to line + -ar. Doublet of lineal.
adjective more linear · most linear
- Having the form of a line; straight or roughly straight; following a direct course. The route taken does not have to be a perfectly straight line, just so long as it is linear and is followed consistently for each transect taken.
-
Of or relating to lines.
Similar: lineal
- Made, or designed to be used, in a step-by-step, sequential manner. a linear medium
- Long and narrow, with nearly parallel sides.
- Having degree one; that is, being of the form a_1x_1+a_2x_2+⋯+a_nx_n+b, where each x_i is a variable. See also Linear polynomials on Wikipedia.Wikipedia 4x#43;5y#43;#92;frac#123;1#125;#123;2#125;z is a linear polynomial, but 4xy#43;#92;frac#123;1#125;#123;2#125;z and 4x#43;z² are not.
- Involving only linear polynomials. See also Linear equation on Wikipedia.Wikipedia The graph of the linear equation y#61;ax#43;b is a straight line with slope a and y-intercept b
- An additive, homogeneous mapping; that is, a function f:V→W is linear if it distributes over vector addition (f( mathbf v+ mathbf w)=f( mathbf v)+f( mathbf w)) and respects scalar multiplication (f(c mathbf v)=cf( mathbf v)). If V and W are vector spaces over a field K, f may also be called a K-linear map. See also linear map on Wikipedia.Wikipedia The map f#58;#92;mathbb#123;R#125;³#92;to#92;mathbb#123;R#125;² taking (x,y,z)#92;mapsto(x#43;y#43;z,x-y#43;3z) is a linear map.
- A module homomorphism; that is, a group homomorphism that commutes with scalar multiplication. See also Module homomorphism on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
- A type of length measurement involving only one spatial dimension (as opposed to area or volume). a linear meter
-
Delivered or delivering on a fixed schedule, as opposed to on-demand.
linear TV, linear content, linear video, linear radio
Similar: broadcast, tune-in · Opposite: streaming, on-demand, non-linear
noun linears
- Ellipsis of linear amplifier
Linear²
proper noun
- A comet, cataloged as “C/1999 S4”, discovered on September 27, 1999, by the Lincoln Near-Earth Asteroid Research program in New Mexico. (See https://web.archive.org/web/20051220100856/http://www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link=/comets/linear.html) Sometimes spelled LINEAR.
LINEAR³
proper noun
- Initialism of Lincoln Near-Earth Asteroid Research program
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: collinear, rectilineal, rectilinear, linelike, bilinear, additive, lengthwise, lengthways, analog, elongate, running, analogue, lineal, one-dimensional, simple, unsubdivided
Translations
Every language
adj having the form of a line
| Español | lineal |
|---|---|
| 中文 | 线性 xianxing |
| Português | linear |
| Français | linéaire |
| Deutsch | linear |
| Italiano | lineare |
| Ελληνικά | γραμμικός grammikós |
| Русский | лине́йный linéjnyj |
adj of or relating to lines
| Español | lineal |
|---|
adj made in a step-by-step manner
| Русский | после́довательный poslédovatelʹnyj |
|---|
adj botany, of leaves: long and narrow
| Español | lineal |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | linealisch, lineal |
adj in mathematics, of first-degree polynomial
| Español | lineal |
|---|---|
| Português | linear |
| Français | linéaire |
| Deutsch | linear |
| Italiano | lineare |
| Ελληνικά | γραμμικός grammikós |
| Русский | лине́йный linéjnyj |
adj physics: involving only one dimension
| Español | unidimensional |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | linear |
| Русский | линейный linejnyj, одномерный odnomernyj |
Talk about this word "linear." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/linear. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. linear. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/linear "linear." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/linear.Cite this
@misc{linear_2026,
title = {linear},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/linear},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
