Word forms: plural, 3rd person singular presenttense, plural arcs, present participle arcing, past tense, past participle arced
1. countable noun
An arc is a smoothly curving line or movement.
The Aleutian chain is a long arc of islands in the North Pacific.
2. countable noun
In geometry, an arc is a part of the line that forms the outside of a circle.
[technical]
3. verb
If something arcs in a particular direction, it makes a smoothly curving line or movement.
[literary]
A rainbow arced gracefully over the town. [VERB preposition/adverb]
More Synonyms of arc
arc in British English
(ɑːk)
noun
1.
something curved in shape
2.
part of an unbroken curved line
3.
a luminous discharge that occurs when an electric current flows between two electrodes or any other two surfaces separated by a small gap and a high potential difference
4. astronomy
a circular section of the apparent path of a celestial body
5. mathematics
a section of a curve, graph, or geometric figure
verbWord forms: arcs, arcing, arced, arcs, arcking or arcked
6. (intransitive)
to form an arc
prefix
7. mathematics
specifying an inverse trigonometric function: usually written arcsin, arctan, arcsec, etc, or sometimes sin–1, tan–1, sec–1, etc
Word origin
C14: from Old French, from Latin arcus bow, arch
ARC in British English
abbreviation for
AIDS-related complex: an early condition in which a person infected with the AIDS virus may suffer from such mild symptoms as loss of weight, fever, etc
ARC in American English1
(ɑrk)
noun
AIDS-related complex
ARC in American English2
American Red Cross
Arc in American English
see d'Arc
arc in American English
(ɑrk)
noun
1. Obsolete
the part of a circle that is the apparent path of a heavenly body above and below the horizon
2.
a bowlike curved line or object
3. Electricity
the band of sparks or incandescent light formed when an electric discharge is conducted from one electrode or conducting surface to another, characterized by relatively high current and low potential difference between electrodes
4. Geometry
a.
any part of a curve, esp. of a circle
b.
the angular measurement of this
adjective
5.
designating an inverse trigonometric function
arc sine x is an angle whose sine is x
verb intransitiveWord forms: arced or arcked, ˈarcing or ˈarcking
6.
to move in a curved course
7. Electricity
to form an arc
Word origin
ME ark < OFr arc < L arcus, a bow, arch < IE base *arqu-, bowed, curved > arrow
Examples of 'arc' in a sentence
arc
In some ways, their playing careers have followed a similar arc.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
The arc lights stopped me seeing anything other than a shapeless, heaving mass.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Her surgery has left her with a huge scar that arcs around her body.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
This arc of pristine sand sweeps around a bay backed by swaying palm trees.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
The powerful arc lights had made the small space quite hot and stuffy.
Davey, Ray Rev. & Cole, John A Channel of Peace (1993)
The search continued along two vast arcs of land and sea.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
These two points then act as a compass enabling large circles and arcs to be drawn.
Chapman, C. & Horsley, M. & Small, E. Technology Basic Facts (1990)
His career has followed the arc of an epic poem.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
They all wanted to talk about bending the arc of history to the future.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
His businesses follow a giddy arc and tend to go awry.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
It is understood that he would want new electric arc furnaces installed as a part of any deal.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
They were trying to get big runners on the arc outside him and it is difficult to defend that.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
No one would dispute the importance to young people of learning the narrative arc of the history of their country.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
Clear and sharp as anything, this colourless white arc curved in a half circle before me.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
The company is investing 300m in an electric arc furnace to allow it to expand production.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
As he tells it, this history traces two great arcs.
The Times Literary Supplement (2008)
But before we grasp for a quick fix to our condition, we need to consider the longer arc of biblical ecology.
Christianity Today (2000)
I love the track and the special atmosphere that crackles with excitement on Arc day.
Frankie Dettori with Jonathan Powell FRANKIE: The Autobiography of Frankie Dettori (2004)
For a month I have been followed around by a total body arc trainer.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
I always say that Arc day is spoilt when the ground is bad and the same applies here.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
It was Arc trials day and four big-race rides offered the prospect of consolation.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
Smaller units can also be staggered in a similar fashion, or fanned out in arcs if a curved shape works particularly well in the garden.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
Then the young British soldier launches himself down the mountainside, carving long arcs in the snow.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
Each time, stretch the dough towards you to form an arc, slapping it back on itself.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
But slowly, one of the lines arcs gently to the left; the other gently to the right.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
In other languages
arc
British English: arc NOUN
An arc is a smoothly curving line or movement.
...a long arc of islands.
American English: arc
Brazilian Portuguese: arco
Chinese: 弧线
European Spanish: arco
French: arc
German: Bogen
Italian: arco
Japanese: 弧
Korean: 호
European Portuguese: arco
Latin American Spanish: arco
All related terms of 'arc'
d'Arc
Jeanne ( ʒan 🔊 ) → Joan of Arc
arc lamp
a lamp in which brilliant light is produced by maintaining an arc between two electrodes , used as a spotlight , searchlight , etc.
arc light
Arc lights are a type of very bright electric light.
story arc
a continuing storyline in a television series that gradually unfolds over several episodes
arc-boutant
a buttress supporting a wall or other structure by an arch or part of an arch that transmits the thrust outwards and downwards
arc furnace
a furnace in which the charge is heated by an electric arc
arc welding
a technique in which metal is welded by heat generated by an electric arc struck between two electrodes or between one electrode and the metal workpiece
carbon arc
an electric arc produced between two carbon electrodes , formerly used as a light source
island arc
an arc-shaped chain of islands, such as the Aleutian Islands or the Japanese Islands, usually lying at the edge of a Benioff zone , indicating volcanic activity where the oceanic lithosphere is descending into the earth's interior
mercury arc
an electric discharge through ionized mercury vapour , producing a brilliant bluish-green light containing ultraviolet radiation
reflex arc
the neural pathway over which impulses travel to produce a reflex action, consisting of at least one afferent ( receptor ) and one efferent ( effector ) neuron
electric arc
→ arc (sense 3 )
Jeanne d'Arc
→ Joan of Arc
Joan of Arc
Saint known as the Maid of Orléans; French name Jeanne d'Arc. ?1412–31, French national heroine , who led the army that relieved Orléans in the Hundred Years' War, enabling Charles VII to be crowned at Reims (1429). After being captured (1430), she was burnt at the stake as a heretic . She was canonized in 1920. Feast day: May 30
minute of arc
a period of time equal to 60 seconds ; one sixtieth of an hour
Arc de Triomphe
the triumphal arch in Paris begun by Napoleon I to commemorate his victories of 1805–6 and completed in 1836
flame-arc light
an arc light that uses flame carbons to colour the arc
electric-arc furnace
a furnace in which the charge is heated by an electric arc
electric-arc welding
a technique in which metal is welded by heat generated by an electric arc struck between two electrodes or between one electrode and the metal workpiece
submerged arc welding
a type of heavy electric-arc welding using mechanically fed bare wire with the arc submerged in powdered flux to keep out oxygen
shielded metal arc welding
Shielded metal arc welding is a process in which a coated wire is melted to fill spaces between parts. The molten coating floats to the surface of the molten metal to protect it from the atmosphere .
minute
A minute is one of the sixty parts that an hour is divided into. People often say ' a minute ' or ' minutes ' when they mean a short length of time.
Chinese translation of 'arc'
arc
(ɑːk)
n(c)
(= curve) 弧形 (húxíng)
(in geometry) 弧 (hú)
(noun)
Definition
something curved in shape
The 71 offices are spread out in an arc around London.
Synonyms
curve
a curve in the road
bend
The crash occurred on a sharp bend.
bow
arch
Train the cane supports to form an arch.
crescent
a flag with a white crescent on a red ground
half-moon
Additional synonyms
in the sense of arch
Definition
something curved
Train the cane supports to form an arch.
Synonyms
curve,
bend,
bow,
crook,
arc,
hunch,
sweep,
hump,
curvature,
semicircle
in the sense of bend
Definition
a curved part
The crash occurred on a sharp bend.
Synonyms
curve,
turn,
corner,
hook,
twist,
angle,
bow,
loop,
arc,
zigzag,
camber
in the sense of crescent
Definition
the curved shape of the moon when in its first or last quarter