Main Entry:

se·cant

Pronunciation:

\ˈsē-ˌkant, -kənt\

Function:

noun

Etymology:

New Latin secant-, secans, from Latin, present participle of secare to cut — more at saw

Date:

1593

1: a straight line cutting a curve at two or more points2: a straight line drawn from the center of a circle through one end of a circular arc to a tangent drawn from the other end of the arc3 a: a trigonometric function that for an acute angle is the ratio of the hypotenuse of a right triangle of which the angle is considered part and the leg adjacent to the angle b: a trigonometric function sec θ that is the reciprocal of the cosine for all real numbers θ for which the cosine is not zero and that is exactly equal to the secant of an angle of measure θ in radians