cone

American  

[kohn] / koʊn /

noun

1. Geometry.

   1. a solid whose surface is generated by a line passing through a fixed point and a fixed plane curve not containing the point, consisting of two equal sections joined at a vertex.

   2. a plane surface resembling the cross section of a solid cone.

2. anything shaped like a cone.

   sawdust piled up in a great cone; the cone of a volcano.

3. ice-cream cone.

4. Botany.

   1. the more or less conical multiple fruit of the pine, fir, etc., consisting of overlapping or valvate scales bearing naked ovules or seeds; a strobile.

   2. a similar fruit, as in cycads or club mosses.

5. Anatomy. one of the cone-shaped cells in the retina of the eye, sensitive to color and intensity of light.

6. one of a series of cone-shaped markers placed along a road, as around an area of highway construction, especially to exclude or divert motor vehicles.

7. (in a taper thread screw or bevel gear) an imaginary cone or frustum of a cone concentric to the axis and defining the pitch surface or one of the extremities of the threads or teeth.

8. Ceramics. pyrometric cone.

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verb (used with object)

coned, coning

1. to shape like a cone or a segment of a cone.

cone British  

/ kəʊn /

noun

1. 1. a geometric solid consisting of a plane base bounded by a closed curve, often a circle or an ellipse, every point of which is joined to a fixed point, the vertex, lying outside the plane of the base. A right circular cone has a vertex perpendicularly above or below the centre of a circular base. Volume of a cone: 1/ 3 π r ² h, where r is the radius of the base and h is the height of the cone

   2. a geometric surface formed by a line rotating about the vertex and connecting the peripheries of two closed plane bases, usually circular or elliptical, above and below the vertex See also conic section

2. anything that tapers from a circular section to a point, such as a wafer shell used to contain ice cream

3. 1. the reproductive body of conifers and related plants, made up of overlapping scales, esp the mature female cone , whose scales each bear a seed

   2. Technical name: strobilus.  a similar structure in horsetails, club mosses, etc

4. a small cone-shaped bollard used as a temporary traffic marker on roads

5. Also called: retinal cone.  any one of the cone-shaped cells in the retina of the eye, sensitive to colour and bright light

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verb

1. (tr) to shape like a cone or part of a cone

cone Scientific  

/ kōn /

1. A three-dimensional surface or solid object in which the base is a circle and upper surface narrows to form a point. The surface of a cone is formed mathematically by moving a line that passes through a fixed point (the vertex) along a circle.

2. A rounded or elongated reproductive structure that consists of sporophylls or scales arranged spirally or in an overlapping fashion along a central stem, as in conifers and cycads. For example, the familiar woody pinecone is actually the female cone, made up of ovule-bearing scales. The smaller male cones of the pine consist of thin overlapping microsporophylls. These produce pollen that is carried by the wind to fertilize ovules in the female cones. When the seeds in the female cones mature, the cones of many pine species expand to release them. In some pine species, cones release seeds only in response to the presence of fire.

3. See also strobilus

4. One of the cone-shaped cells in the retina of the eye of many vertebrate animals. Cones are extremely sensitive to light and can distinguish among different wavelengths. Cones are responsible for vision during daylight and for the ability to see colors.

5. Compare rod

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Etymology

Origin of cone

1480–90; < Latin cōnus < Greek kônos pine-cone, cone-shaped figure; akin to hone ¹

Explanation

A cone is a shape that has a circle at the bottom and sides that narrow to a point, like a party hat, a rubber pylon at a construction site, or, yes, an ice cream cone. Why is a cone called a cone? The Latin word conus means "the peak of a helmet," which must have described the shape of this type of hat in the 16th century. The Greek konos means "spinning top" and "pine cone." Both of these objects have one wider end that tapers to a point, describing a cone very accurately.

Example Sentences

Within about a minute, a cone ant would emerge and climb onto the larger ant.

From Science Daily • Apr. 14, 2026

He'll go to the World Cup as chief cone organiser, perhaps.

From BBC • Mar. 31, 2026

The cone of possible outcomes from here is wide.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 10, 2026

Early activity involved lava spreading out from fissures in the ground, while later eruptions came from more focused vents that built cone shaped features.

From Science Daily • Feb. 23, 2026

I do damage control on my cookies and cream, licking around the circumference of the cone to avoid getting sticky, but it’s no use.

From "South of Somewhere" by Kalena Miller