tropic

1 of 4

noun

trop·​ic ˈträ-pik 

1

: either of the two parallels of terrestrial latitude at a distance of about 23¹/₂ degrees north or south of the equator where the sun is directly overhead when it reaches its most northerly or southerly point in the sky compare tropic of cancer, tropic of capricorn

2

tropics or Tropics plural : the region lying between the tropics

tropic

2 of 4

adjective (1)

: of, relating to, or occurring in the tropics

tropic

3 of 4

adjective (2)

tro·​pic ˈtrō-pik 

1

: of, relating to, or characteristic of tropism or of a tropism

2

of a hormone : influencing the activity of a specified gland

-tropic

4 of 4

adjective combining form

1

: turning, changing, or tending to turn or change in a (specified) manner or in response to a (specified) stimulus

geotropic

2

: attracted to or acting upon (something specified)

neurotropic

Examples of tropic in a Sentence

Noun

a vacation in the tropics

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Now, the holdout is the Northern Territory, a handful of cities and towns situated within a vast, sparsely populated stretch from the heart of the country’s red outback to its northernmost tropics that some term Australia’s last frontier. —Yan Zhuang, New York Times, 2 July 2023

Florida is in close proximity to the warmer tropics, a potpourri of buzzing mosquitoes. —Max Chesnes, Sun Sentinel, 22 Mar. 2023

Animals in the warm, wet tropics, therefore, can reproduce prolifically, which, although certainly not on the minds of the breeding individuals, is a good way to enhance species survival and success. —Ned Rozell | Alaska Science, Anchorage Daily News, 11 Mar. 2023

Of course, for orchidists and anthophiles, the real attraction is getting up close to thousands of orchids in the conservatory and tropics house, including sculptures covered in flowers. —Chris Richards, Washington Post, 16 Feb. 2023

Adjective

For long hours Monday, gray clouds seemed to presage rain, and the damp air seemed to enhance the sultry sense of tropic life. —Martin Weil, Washington Post, 4 July 2023

The engine that powers every tropic cyclone is convection: enormous volumes of moist, rising air create a vacuum at the surface that sucks in surrounding air as spiraling winds. —Martin J. Kernan, Scientific American, 1 June 2023

Here the lemon and orange grow to perfection and almost all of the fruits and vegetables of the temperate and semi-tropic climes flourish, while experiments made by some of our growers show that the banana, pineapple and other tropical fruits will do well. —San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Feb. 2023

The underlying justification for their mastery of this bountiful, beautiful semi-tropic place was the conviction that their predecessors — native Americans, Spanish, Mexican — were unappreciative and undeserving, unlike the grateful and energetic Yankee. —Los Angeles Times, 11 Jan. 2022

Recent research reveals more variety in this creature, which can be found in tropic locations around the world. —David Kindy, Smithsonian Magazine, 27 July 2021

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Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English tropik, borrowed from Middle French & Late Latin; Middle French tropike, tropique, borrowed from Late Latin tropicus (short for tropicus circulus), noun derivative of Latin tropicus "of a solstice or equinox," borrowed from Greek tropikós, from tropḗ "turn, change, solstitial point" (noun derivative from the base of trépein "to turn") + -ikos -ic entry 1 — more at trope

Adjective (1)

borrowed from Middle French & Latin; Middle French tropike, tropique "of the sun's change of direction at the solstice, of either of the two tropics," borrowed from Latin tropicus "of a solstice or equinox" — more at tropic entry 1

Adjective (2)

generalization of -tropic, after German tropisch

Adjective combining form

French -tropique, from Greek -tropos -tropous

First Known Use

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective (1)

1624, in the meaning defined above

Adjective (2)

1899, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing tropic

• tropic bird

• tropic bird

Kids Definition

tropic

1 of 3 noun

trop·​ic ˈträp-ik 

1

: either of the two parallels of the earth's latitude that are approximately 23½ degrees north of the equator and approximately 23½ degrees south of the equator

2

plural often capitalized : the region lying between the two tropics

tropic

2 of 3 adjective

: tropical

tropic

3 of 3 adjective

tro·​pic ˈtrō-pik 

: of, relating to, or being a tropism

a tropic movement of a plant

Etymology

Noun

Middle English tropik (noun) "either of the points at which the sun appears furthest from the equator," from Latin tropicus (adjective) "of a solstice or equinox," from Greek tropikos (same meaning), from tropē "turn"; so called because a tropic marks the turning point in the sun's apparent path up the sky

Medical Definition

tropic

adjective

tro·​pic ˈtrō-pik 

1

: of, relating to, or characteristic of tropism or of a tropism

2

of a hormone : influencing the activity of a specified gland