Abscissa and ordinate - wikipedia Abscissa and ordinate ( Redirected from Abscissa ) Illustration of a Cartesian coordinate plane, showing the absolute values of the coordinates of the points ( 2, 3 ), ( 0, 0 ), ( -- 3, 1 ), and ( -- 1.5, -- 2.5 ). The first value in each of these signed ordered pairs is the abscissa of the corresponding point, and the second value is its ordinate. In mathematics, an abscissa ( / æbˈsɪs. ə / ; plural abscissae or abscissæ or abscissas ) is the number whose absolute value ( modulus ) is the perpendicular distance of a point from the vertical axis ; the ordinate is the number whose absolute value is the point 's perpendicular distance from the horizontal axis. Usually these are the horizontal and vertical coordinates of a point in a two - dimensional rectangular Cartesian coordinate system. The terms can also refer to the horizontal and vertical axes respectively ( typically x-axis and y -- axis ) of a two - dimensional graph. An ordered pair consists of two terms -- the abscissa ( horizontal, usually x ) and the ordinate ( vertical, usually y ) -- which define the location of a point in two - dimensional rectangular space. ( x ⏞ abscissa, y ⏞ ordinate ) ( displaystyle ( overbrace ( x ) ^ ( \text ( abscissa ) ), overbrace ( y ) ^ ( \text ( ordinate ) ) ) ) Contents 1 Etymology 2 In parametric equations 3 Examples 4 See also 5 References 6 External links Etymology Though the word `` abscissa '' ( Latin ; `` linea abscissa '', `` a line cut off '' ) has been used at least since De Practica Geometrie published in 1220 by Fibonacci ( Leonardo of Pisa ), its use in its modern sense may be due to Venetian mathematician Stefano degli Angeli in his work Miscellaneum Hyperbolicum, et Parabolicum of 1659. In his 1892 work Vorlesungen über Geschichte der Mathematik, Volume 2, ( `` Lectures on history of mathematics '' ) German historian of mathematics Moritz Cantor writes `` Wir kennen keine ältere Benutzung des Wortes Abssisse in lateinischen Originalschriften ( than degli Angeli 's ). Vielleicht kommt das Wort in Übersetzungen der Apollonischen Kegelschnitte vor, wo Buch I Satz 20 von ἀποτεμνομέναις die Rede ist, wofür es kaum ein entsprechenderes lateinisches Wort als abscissa geben möchte. '' `` We know no earlier use of the word abscissa in Latin originals ( than degli Angeli 's ). Maybe the word descends from translations of the Apollonian conics, where in Book I, Chapter 20 there appears ἀποτεμνομέναις, for which there would hardly be as an appropriate Latin word as abscissa. '' In parametric equations In a somewhat obsolete variant usage, the abscissa of a point may also refer to any number that describes the point 's location along some path, e.g. the parameter of a parametric equation. Used in this way, the abscissa can be thought of as a coordinate - geometry analog to the independent variable in a mathematical model or experiment ( with any ordinates filling a role analogous to dependent variables ). Examples For the point ( 2, 3 ), 2 is called the abscissa and 3 the ordinate. For the point ( − 1.5, − 2.5 ), − 1.5 is called the abscissa and − 2.5 the ordinate. See also Geometry portal Dependent and independent variables Function ( mathematics ) Relation ( mathematics ) Line chart References Jump up ^ Dyer, Jason ( March 8, 2009 ). `` On the Word `` Abscissa '' ``. https://numberwarrior.wordpress.com. The number Warrior. Retrieved September 10, 2015. External link in website = ( help ) Jump up ^ Cantor, Moritz ( 1900 ). Vorlesungen über Geschichte der Mathematik, Volume 2. Leipzig : B.G. Teubner. p. 898. Retrieved 10 September 2015. Jump up ^ Hedegaard, Rasmus ; Weisstein, Eric W. `` Abscissa ''. MathWorld. Retrieved 14 July 2013. This article is based on material taken from the Free On - line Dictionary of Computing prior to 1 November 2008 and incorporated under the `` relicensing '' terms of the GFDL, version 1.3 or later. External links The dictionary definition of abscissa and ordinate at Wiktionary Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Abscissa_and_ordinate&oldid=800856952 '' Categories : Elementary mathematics Coordinate systems Dimension Hidden categories : CS1 errors : external links Talk Contents About Wikipedia Беларуская Български Čeština Dansk Deutsch Eesti Esperanto Ido Bahasa Indonesia Қазақша Кыргызча Magyar Norsk nynorsk Oʻzbekcha / ўзбекча Plattdüütsch Polski Português Română Русский Slovenčina Slovenščina ไทย Türkmençe Українська 粵語 Edit links This page was last edited on 16 September 2017, at 02 : 56. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. About Wikipedia

Question: what is the distance of a point from y axis called
Answer: the ordinate