vector
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vector
- /ˈvɛktə/ UK
- /ˈvɛktɚ/ US
Rhymes with -ɛktə(ɹ)
Where it comes from
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.
noun vectors
- A directed quantity, one with both magnitude and direction; the signed difference between two points. Velocity is a vector defined by the speed of an object and its direction.
- Any member of a (generalized) vector space. The vectors in #123;#92;mathbbQ#125;#91;X#93; are the single-variable polynomials with rational coefficients: one is #92;textstylex#123;42#125;#43;#92;frac1#123;137#125;x-1.
- An ordered tuple, originally one representing a directed quantity, but by extension any one-dimensional matrix. Computers store many types of data as vectors for ease of processing.
- A chosen course or direction for motion, as of an aircraft. I was told to fly out on a vector of 100 degrees to meet a strong plot of aircraft 30 miles from the coast.
- A kind of dynamically resizable array. To create a vector of students in a class, you will want the vector to be large enough […]
- 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.
- A graphical representation using outlines; vector graphics. a vector image, vector graphics
- A DNA molecule used to carry genetic information from one organism into another.
- A person or entity that passes along an urban legend or other meme. 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.
- A recurring psychosocial issue that stimulates growth and development in the personality.
- Forces, developments, phenomena, processes, systems, etc. which influence the trajectory of history (e.g. imperialism)
verb vectors · vectoring · vectored
- To set (particularly an aircraft) on a course toward a selected point. […] if love is vectored toward an object and Elinor's here flies toward Marianne, Marianne's in turn toward Willoughby.
- To redirect to a vector, or code entry point.
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: medium, construct, aspect, source, resulting, factor, delivery, agent, conducive, spy, borne, requirement, facilitator, contributor, tool, avenue
Translations
Every language
noun directed quantity
| Español | vector |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 벡터 bekteo |
| 日本語 | ベクトル bekutoru |
| 中文 | 向量 xiàngliàng, 矢量 shǐliàng |
| हिन्दी | सदिश sadiś |
| Português | vector, vetor |
| Français | vecteur |
| Deutsch | Vektor |
| Italiano | vettore |
| Ελληνικά | διάνυσμα diánysma |
| Română | vector |
| Русский | ве́ктор véktor |
| Tiếng Việt | đại lượng có hướng, đại lượng hữu hướng, hướng lượng |
| العربية | مُتَّجِه muttajih, مُتَّجِهات muttajihāt, شُعاع šuʕāʕ, أَشِعَّة ʔašiʕʕa |
| עברית | וקטור vektór |
noun carrier of a disease-causing agent
| Español | vector |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | ベクター bekutā |
| 中文 | 病媒 bìngméi |
| हिन्दी | रोगवाहक rogvāhak |
| Português | vetor |
| Français | vecteur |
| Italiano | vettore |
| Ελληνικά | φορέας foréas |
| Русский | перено́счик perenósčik |
| العربية | ناقِل nāqil, نَواقِلُ nawāqilu |
noun aviation: chosen course or direction for motion
| Español | vector |
|---|---|
| Português | vector |
| Русский | курс kurs, направле́ние napravlénije |
noun programming: kind of array
| Español | vector |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 벡터 bekteo |
| Português | vetor |
| Română | vector |
| Русский | ве́ктор véktor, масси́в massív |
| Tiếng Việt | mảng một chiều |
| עברית | וקטור vektór |
noun DNA molecule used to carry genetic information from one organism into another
| 中文 | 載體 /载体 zàitǐ |
|---|
Talk about this word "vector." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/vector. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. vector. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/vector "vector." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/vector.Cite this
@misc{vector_2026,
title = {vector},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/vector},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
