quaternion
UK /kwəˈtɜːni.ən/ · US /kwɑˈtɜɹniɑn/ noun
Forms quaternions
- noun A group or set of four people or things.
- noun A word of four syllables.
- noun (mathematics) A type of four-dimensional hypercomplex number consisting of a real part and three imaginary parts (real multiples of distinct, independent square roots of −1 denoted by i, j and k); commonly used in vector mathematics and as an alternative to matrix algebra in calculating the rotation of three-dimensional objects.
Synonyms
foursome tetrad four 4 IV quatern quaternary quaternity quartet quadruplet Little Joe
Etymology
From Middle English quaterniǒun, from Late Latin quaterniō, from quaternī (“four each”) + -iō, from quater (“four times”). Doublet of kern. The mathematics sense was coined by Irish mathematician and astronomer William Rowan Hamilton in 1843.
Webster’s 1913
- noun The number four. [Poetic]
- noun A set of four parts, things, or person; four things taken collectively; a group of four words, phrases, circumstances, facts, or the like.
- verb To divide into quaternions, files, or companies. Milton.
Etymology [L. quaternio, fr.quaterni four each. See Quaternary.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “quaternion”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details