unary

American

[yoo-nuh-ree] / ˈyu nə ri /

adjective

Mathematics.

pertaining to a function whose domain is a given set and whose range is contained in that set.

unary British

/ ˈjuːnərɪ /

adjective

consisting of, or affecting, a single element or component; monadic

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of unary

1570–80; < Latin ūn ( us ) one + -ary, on the model of binary

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Mentioning it is usually good for a cheap laugh among hackers -- the design was so baroque, and the implementation of 1.x so bad, that 3 years after introduction you could still count the major apps shipping for it on the fingers of two hands -- in unary.

From Project Gutenberg

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023