Mathematics · Glossary

What is Circle?

Also known as: diameter

Definition 26.6 Primary & Middle School Mathematics · Chapter 26 — Lines and Polygons

The circle of center OO and radius 33 cm is the set of all points at exactly 33 cm from OO. The compass draws it: spike on OO, opening 33 cm, turn. A diameter is a segment through the center joining two points of the circle; it measures twice the radius.

Examples

Example 26.7 (The compass as a distance-keeper)

The compass does more than draw circles: it transports distances. To mark all points at 44 cm from a point AA, draw the circle of center AA, radius 44 cm; to compare two segments without a ruler, open the compass on one and test it on the other.

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Definition 40.5 Primary & Middle School Mathematics · Chapter 40 — Lines, Circles and Angles

The circle of center OO and radius rr is the set of all points at distance exactly rr from OO. A segment from the center to the circle is a radius; a segment joining two points of the circle through the center is a diameter — its length is 2r2r; a segment joining two points of the circle is a chord.

A circle with a radius [OM], a diameter [AB] (a chord through the center, twice as long as the radius) and a chord [CD].
A circle with a radius [OM][OM], a diameter [AB][AB] (a chord through the center, twice as long as the radius) and a chord [CD][CD].

Examples

Example 40.6

“Draw the circle of center OO passing through AA”: open the compass from OO to AA — the radius is the distance OAOA — and turn. Every point of this circle is at the same distance from OO as AA.

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