as in oval
a shape that resembles a flattened circle
The teacher drew an ellipse on the chalkboard that intended to illustrate the moon's orbit around the Earth.
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Recent Examples of ellipse
These can be defined mathematically, with the key factor being the eccentricity: how much the ellipse deviates form a circle.
—
Phil Plait, Scientific American, 25 July 2025
The Oakley Ellipse 50th Anniversary pair, designed to reflect the ellipse of the Oakley logo, retains the brand's futurist aesthetic with the lens shape and curve, known at Oakley as the PhysioMorphic Geometry.
—Cassell Ferere, Forbes.com, 14 July 2025
The moon’s orbital path around Earth is a slight ellipse, so there’s a near-point (perigee) and a far-point (apogee) every month.
—Jamie Carter, Forbes, 13 Oct. 2024
The above pic shows how the landing target for the rover, also known as Curiosity, has been changed: from an ellipse 20 kilometers by 25 kilometers, the new target is just 7 kilometers by 20 kilometers.
—IEEE Spectrum, 12 June 2012
See All Example Sentences for ellipse
Phil Plait, Scientific American, 25 July 2025
The Oakley Ellipse 50th Anniversary pair, designed to reflect the ellipse of the Oakley logo, retains the brand's futurist aesthetic with the lens shape and curve, known at Oakley as the PhysioMorphic Geometry.
—Cassell Ferere, Forbes.com, 14 July 2025
The moon’s orbital path around Earth is a slight ellipse, so there’s a near-point (perigee) and a far-point (apogee) every month.
—Jamie Carter, Forbes, 13 Oct. 2024
The above pic shows how the landing target for the rover, also known as Curiosity, has been changed: from an ellipse 20 kilometers by 25 kilometers, the new target is just 7 kilometers by 20 kilometers.
—IEEE Spectrum, 12 June 2012
See All Example Sentences for ellipse
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ellipse
Noun
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The hood was spreading, forming its cupped oval.—
John McPhee,
New Yorker,
20 Apr. 2026
-
Temperatures sat in the low 50s with postcard-blue skies framing the asphalt oval for the midday ARCA Menards Series race.—
The Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
18 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Key Takeaways Bagels topped with bacon, egg, and cheese are better for blood sugar, but high sodium can raise blood pressure.—
Angelica Bottaro,
Verywell Health,
25 Apr. 2026
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Mornings start at the barn-style main restaurant, where the tight breakfast menu includes mushroom noodles, yak yogurt granola, and coddled eggs with cordyceps (a local edible fungi) alongside a small buffet spread of fresh bread, yak butter, jam, and tsampa (buckwheat flour) for porridge.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
25 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Continue reading … SECRET CRACKED — NOAA identifies bizarre 'golden orb' found 2 miles deep on sea floor near Alaska.—
,
FOXNews.com,
24 Apr. 2026
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The conundrum began in the summer of 2023, when NOAA personnel aboard the Okeanos Explorer sent a robot about two miles down to explore a small seamount and found the golden orb, which was about four inches in diameter, connected to a rock.—
Sam Gillette,
PEOPLE,
24 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Ellipse.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ellipse. Accessed 27 Apr. 2026.
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