longitude

lon·gi·tude | \ ˈlän-jə-ˌtüd

How to pronounce longitude (audio)

, -ˌtyüd, British also ˈläŋ-gə- \

Definition of longitude

1a : angular distance measured on a great circle of reference from the intersection of the adopted zero meridian with this reference circle to the similar intersection of the meridian passing through the object

b : the arc or portion of the earth's equator intersected between the meridian of a given place and the prime meridian and expressed either in degrees or in time

2 archaic : long duration

Did You Know? Example Sentences Learn More about longitude

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Did You Know?

The imaginary (but very important) lines of longitude run from the North Pole to the South Pole. Each is identified by the number of degrees it lies east or west of the so-called prime meridian in Greenwich, England (part of London). A circle is divided into 360°; so, for example, the longitude of the Egyptian city of Cairo is about 31°E—that is, about 31° east of London. The "long" sense of the root may be easier to see in some uses of the adjective longitudinal: A longitudinal study is a research study that follows its subjects over many long years, and a longitudinal engine is one that drives a crankshaft that runs lengthwise under a vehicle (as in rear-wheel-drive cars) rather than crosswise.

Examples of longitude in a Sentence

a map of the world showing lines of latitude and longitude calculating the longitudes of different places The regions are on roughly the same longitude.

Recent Examples on the Web This is in contrast to the longitude and latitude location tracked by several dating apps. — Ananya Bhattacharya, Quartz India, "Butterfly wants to give India’s trans community a dating app that puts them first," 7 Jan. 2020 The expert retranslated a primary record of the Grayback’s sinking and found that the longitude differed from a record created in 1946. — Fox News, "WWII US submarine wreck discovered 75 years after it sank," 11 Nov. 2019 Cartographers could have anointed any number of imaginary lines to be 0 degrees longitude. — Quanta Magazine, "To Test Einstein’s Equations, Poke a Black Hole," 8 Mar. 2018 The space agency produces a detailed set of data using imagery to estimate the world's population by latitude and longitude. — Philip Bump, Washington Post, "The breathtaking scale of Santa Claus’s task on Christmas Eve," 20 Dec. 2019 Last year, an amateur researcher in Japan detected a mistake in the latitude and longitude of the spot where the Grayback probably sank. — CBS News, "USS Grayback, U.S. submarine missing for 75 years, found off Okinawa, Japan," 11 Nov. 2019 Every time a bag hits the scales, a computer records the date and time of the catch, the boat’s latitude and longitude, and of course the weight — generally around 50 pounds each bag. — BostonGlobe.com, "Ever wonder where your next meal is coming from? A Massachusetts fishing company will soon be able to show diners at a restaurant chain in California exactly where and when the seafood on their plates was harvested, in some cases even showing video of scallops being hauled out of the sea.," 24 Oct. 2019 Each one represents 10-degree divisions of latitude and longitude. — Sebastian Smee, Washington Post, "This enormous glass sphere represents the entire world, as it was in 1935," 9 Oct. 2019 On top of the direction needle, there’s also a new Compass app, which provides your longitude, latitude, elevation, and more—which is great for hiking, camping, and skiing enthusiasts. — Susan Brickell, Health.com, "I Tried the Apple Watch Series 5—and It Legit Made Tracking My Period *So* Much Easier," 7 Oct. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'longitude.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Learn More about longitude

Dictionary Entries near longitude

Long Island City

Long Island Sound

longitude by account

longitude of node

longitude of perihelion

Statistics for longitude

Last Updated

24 Jan 2020

Cite this Entry

“Longitude.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/longitude. Accessed 16 Feb. 2020.

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More Definitions for longitude

longitude

noun

English Language Learners Definition of longitude

: distance measured in degrees east or west from an imaginary line (called the prime meridian) that goes from the North Pole to the South Pole and that passes through Greenwich, England

: an imaginary line that circles the Earth at a particular longitude

See the full definition for longitude in the English Language Learners Dictionary

longitude

lon·gi·tude | \ ˈlän-jə-ˌtüd

, -ˌtyüd \

Kids Definition of longitude

: distance measured in degrees east or west of an imaginary line that runs from the north pole to the south pole and passes through Greenwich, England

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