latitude

English Online Dictionary. What means latitude‎? What does latitude mean?

English

Etymology

Borrowed into Middle English from Old French latitude, from Latin lātitūdō (“breadth, width, latitude”), from lātus (“broad, wide”), from older stlātus.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈlæt.ɪ.tjuːd/
• (US) IPA^(key): /ˈlæt.ɪ.tud/, /ˈlæt.ə.tjud/

Noun

latitude (countable and uncountable, plural latitudes)

2. (geography, astronomy, countable) The angular distance north or south from a planet's equator, measured along the meridian of that particular point.

   Coordinate term: longitude
4. (geography) An imaginary line (in the form of a circumference) around a planet running parallel to the planet's equator.

   Synonym: parallel

6. (figurative) The relative freedom from restrictions; scope to do something.
8. (astronomy) The angular distance of a heavenly body from the ecliptic.
10. (photography) The extent to which a light-sensitive material can be over- or underexposed and still achieve an acceptable result.
12. Extent or scope; e.g. breadth, width or amplitude.

Usage notes

• When used to refer to distances or imaginary lines around a planet, latitude is relative to the Earth's Equator unless another planet is specified.

Derived terms

Translations

See also

• northing
• zonal

Anagrams

• altitude

French

Etymology

From Latin lātitūdō (“breadth, width, latitude”), from lātus (“broad, wide”), from older stlātus.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /la.ti.tyd/

Noun

latitude f (plural latitudes)

1. expansion, breadth

2. (geography) the distance from a place to the equator measured in degrees on the meridian; parallel viewing
3. (by extension) Different areas under a given temperature due to their greater or lesser distance from the equator

   À la différence des animaux, l’homme peut vivre sous les latitudes les plus opposées.

4. (astronomy) the angle with a plane parallel to the ecliptic, the straight line that passes through a heavenly body and a particular centre on this plane

5. freedom

Antonyms

• longitude

References

• All or part of this article is from the Dictionary of the French Academy, Eighth Edition, 1932-1935, but it may have been modified since.

Further reading

• “latitude”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

Old French

Etymology

From Latin lātitūdō (“breadth, width, latitude”).

Noun

latitude oblique singular, f (oblique plural latitudes, nominative singular latitude, nominative plural latitudes)

1. breadth

Descendants

• → Middle English: latitude
• French: latitude

Portuguese

Pronunciation

• Hyphenation: la‧ti‧tu‧de

Noun

latitude f (plural latitudes)

1. (geography, astronomy) latitude (angular distance north or south from the equator)
2. (geography) latitude (imaginary line parallel to the equator)