cathetus

[ kath-i-tuhs, kuh-thee-tuhs ]

noun

, plural cath·e·ti [kath, -i-tahy, k, uh, -, thee, -tahy].

1. (in an Ionic capital) the vertical guideline through the eye of a volute, from which the form of the volute is determined.

Word History and Origins

Origin of cathetus¹

1565–75; < Latin (noun) < Greek káthetos perpendicular, equivalent to kathe- ( catheter ) + -tos adj. suffix

Example Sentences

This will be the size of the eye, and in it draw a diameter on the line of the "cathetus."

From Project Gutenberg