paraboloid

noun

pa·​rab·​o·​loid pə-ˈra-bə-ˌlȯid 

: a surface all of whose intersections by planes are either parabolas and ellipses or parabolas and hyperbolas

paraboloidal

pə-ˌra-bə-ˈlȯi-dᵊl 

adjective

Examples of paraboloid in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

What at first glance seemed like an architectural free-for-all boiled down to a few geometric forms that Gaudí used over and over: paraboloids (the shape of satellite dishes), ellipsoids (footballs), helicoids (spiralling ramps), and especially hyperboloids (hourglasses). —D. T. Max, New Yorker, 15 Sep. 2025

The closer the streamer is to being parallel to the surface of the paraboloid, the faster the wave appears to move. —Phil Plait, Scientific American, 29 Aug. 2025

Imagine a paraboloid composed of a sequence of parabolas stacked side by side. —Quanta Magazine, 6 Oct. 2021

Nearby, 16 stark-white paraboloid beams supported the Metropolitan Cathedral of Brasília like a crown of thorns. —Heidi Mitchell, WSJ, 2 Nov. 2018

Kagawa Prefectural Gymnasium Built for the 1964 Olympics, the indoor stadium, a cantilevered hyberbolic paraboloid, is threatened with demolition because of leaks. —Ben Ryder Howe, Town & Country, 16 Oct. 2017

Word History

Etymology

parabola + -oid entry 1

First Known Use

circa 1702, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing paraboloid

• hyperbolic paraboloid

Rhymes for paraboloid

• albuminoid
• arytenoid
• cannabinoid
• carotenoid
• epidermoid
• epithelioid
• meteoroid
• subarachnoid
• underemployed
• adenoid
• alkaloid
• amoeboid