vertex

See also: vèrtex

English

Alternative forms

• vertice (nonstandard)

Etymology

Late Middle English, borrowed from Latin vertex (“whirl, eddy; top, crown, peak, summit”). Doublet of vortex.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈvɜː.tɛks/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈvɝˌtɛks/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɜː(ɹ)tɛks

Noun

vertex (plural vertices or vertexes)

1. The highest point, top or apex of something.

   The mountain’s vertex was covered in snow.

   He reached the vertex of his career after decades of work.

   Synonyms: acme, apex, peak, top

   Antonym: fundus

   1. (anatomy) The highest surface on the skull; the crown of the head.
2. (geometry) An angular point of a polygon, polyhedron or higher order polytope.
   1. The common point of the two rays that form an angle.
   2. The point at which an axis meets a curve or surface.
3. (mathematics) A point on the curve with a local minimum or maximum of curvature.
5. (graph theory) One of the elements of a graph joined or not by edges to other vertices.

   Synonym: node

   Coordinate term: plot

6. (computer graphics) A point in 3D space, usually given in terms of its Cartesian coordinates.
7. (optics) The point where the surface of a lens crosses the optical axis.
8. (particle physics) An interaction point.
9. (astrology) The point where the prime vertical meets the ecliptic in the western hemisphere of a natal chart.
10. (typography) A sharp downward point opposite a crotch, as in the letters "V" and "W" but not "Y".

    Coordinate term: apex

Derived terms

• antivertex
• covertex
• frontovertex
• hypervertex
• intervertex
• intravertex
• nonvertex
• supervertex
• vertexal, vertexial
• vertex angle
• vertex cover
• vertex figure
• vertex form
• vertexless
• vertex separation number
• vertexwise

Related terms

• vertical

Translations

highest point

• Aragonese: vértiz m
• Bulgarian: връх (bg) m (vrăh)
• Catalan: vèrtex (ca) m
• Czech: vrchol (cs) m
• Danish: toppunkt n
• Dutch: toppunt (nl)
• Finnish: huippu (fi)
• French: sommet (fr) m
• Georgian: ზენიტი (zeniṭi)
• German: Spitze (de) f, Gipfel (de) m, Scheitelpunkt (de) m, Gipfelpunkt (de) m
• Hebrew: פסגה (he) f (pisga)
• Hungarian: csúcs (hu), csúcspont (hu), tetőpont (hu)
• Ingrian: kukkula
• Italian: vertice (it) m
• Japanese: 頂 (ja) (いただき, itadaki), 頂点 (ja) (ちょうてん, chōten)
• Korean: 정점(頂點) (ko) (jeongjeom)
• Lithuanian: viršūnė f
• Macedonian: врв (mk) m (vrv)
• Māori: akitu
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: toppunkt n

• Plautdietsch: Spetz f
• Polish: wierzchołek (pl) m
• Portuguese: cume (pt) m, vértice (pt) m, topo (pt) m
• Russian: верши́на (ru) f (veršína), верху́шка (ru) f (verxúška)
• Serbo-Croatian: vrh (sh) m
• Slovak: vrchol m
• Spanish: cumbre (es) f, vértice (es) m
• Turkish: zirve (tr), şahika (tr)

highest surface on skull

• Arabic: يَافُوخ m (yāfūḵ)
• Belarusian: це́мя n (cjémja)
• Bulgarian: те́ме (bg) n (téme)
• Catalan: vèrtex (ca) m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 頭頂 / 头顶 (zh) (tóudǐng)

• Czech: temeno (cs) n
• Finnish: päälaki (fi)
• French: sommet (fr) m (de la tête)
• German: Scheitel (de) m
• Greek: βρέγμα (el) n (vrégma)
• Hebrew: קודקוד (he) m (kodkód)
• Hungarian: fejtető (hu)
• Ido: vertico (io)
• Italian: vertice (it) f
• Japanese: 頭頂 (ja) (とうちょう, tōchō)
• Korean: 정수리 (ko) (jeongsuri)
• Lithuanian: viršugalvis f
• Macedonian: теме n (teme)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: isse m

• Persian: تارک (fa) (târak), فرق سر (farq-e sar)
• Polish: ciemię (pl) n
• Portuguese: vértice (pt) m
• Russian: те́мя (ru) n (témja), маку́шка (ru) f (makúška) (colloquial), ма́ковка (ru) f (mákovka) (colloquial)
• Scottish Gaelic: bàrr a' chinn m
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: теме n

  Latin: teme (sh) n

• Slovak: temeno
• Slovene: teme n
• Spanish: vértice (es) m
• Ukrainian: ті́м'я n (tímʺja), ма́ківка f (mákivka)

corner of a polygon or polyhedron

• Arabic: رَأْس (ar) m (raʔs)
• Armenian: գագաթ (hy) (gagatʻ)
• Azerbaijani: təpə nöqtəsi
• Bulgarian: връх (bg) m (vrăh)
• Catalan: vèrtex (ca) m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 頂點 / 顶点 (zh) (dǐngdiǎn), 節點 / 节点 (zh) (jiédiǎn)

• Czech: vrchol (cs) m
• Dutch: hoek (nl)
• Esperanto: vertico
• Finnish: kärki (fi)
• French: sommet (fr) m
• Georgian: მწვერვალი (mc̣vervali)
• German: Scheitelpunkt (de) m, Eckpunkt (de) m, Ecke (de) f
• Greek: κορυφή (el) f (koryfí)

  Ancient Greek: κορυφή f (koruphḗ)

• Hebrew: קודקוד (he) m (kodkód)
• Hindi: शीर्ष (hi) m (śīrṣ)
• Hungarian: csúcs (hu)
• Ingrian: kukkula
• Irish: stuaic f
• Italian: vertice (it) m
• Japanese: 頂点 (ja) (ちょうてん, chōten), 節点 (ja) (せってん, setten)
• Korean: 정점(頂點) (ko) (jeongjeom), 꼭짓점 (ko) (kkokjitjeom)
• Lithuanian: viršūnė f
• Macedonian: теме n (teme)
• Māori: akitu
• Norwegian: hjørne (no)
• Persian: رأس
• Polish: wierzchołek (pl) m
• Portuguese: vértice (pt) m
• Romanian: vârf (ro) n
• Russian: верши́на (ru) f (veršína)
• Sanskrit: विषुवत् (sa) m (viṣuvat)
• Serbo-Croatian: vrh (sh) m, teme (sh) n
• Spanish: vértice (es) m
• Tagalog: tuktok, bagtasan
• Tamil: உச்சி (ta) (ucci)
• Turkish: köşenokta
• Urdu: شیرش m (śīrṣ)

element of a graph — see also node

• Armenian: գագաթ (hy) (gagatʻ)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 頂點 / 顶点 (zh) (dǐngdiǎn)

• Czech: vrchol (cs) m
• Dutch: knoop (nl)
• Esperanto: vertico
• Finnish: solmu (fi)
• French: sommet (fr)
• German: Knoten (de) m, Ecke (de) f
• Hebrew: קודקוד (he) m (kodkód), צומת (he) m (tzómet)
• Hungarian: csúcs (hu), pont (hu)
• Italian: nodo (it) m
• Japanese: 頂点 (ja) (ちょうてん, chōten)
• Korean: 정점(頂點) (ko) (jeongjeom), 꼭짓점 (ko) (kkokjitjeom)
• Macedonian: теме n (teme)
• Polish: wierzchołek (pl) m
• Portuguese: vértice (pt) m
• Russian: верши́на (ru) f (veršína)
• Serbo-Croatian: vrh (sh) m
• Slovak: vrchol m
• Spanish: vértice (es) m

point in 3D space

• Finnish: verteksi (fi)
• Georgian: მწვერვალი (mc̣vervali)
• German: Scheitelpunkt (de) m
• Italian: vertice (it) m
• Japanese: 頂点 (ja) (ちょうてん, chōten)
• Korean: 정점(頂點) (ko) (jeongjeom), 꼭짓점 (ko) (kkokjitjeom)
• Macedonian: теме n (teme)
• Portuguese: vértice (pt) m
• Russian: верши́на (ru) f (veršína)
• Serbo-Croatian: vrh (sh) m, verteks (sh) m
• Spanish: vértice (es) m

point where the surface of an optical element crosses the optical axis

• Finnish: keskipiste (fi)
• Italian: please add this translation if you can
• Spanish: vértice (es) m

physics: interaction point

• Finnish: vuorovaikutuspiste
• Italian: please add this translation if you can
• Spanish: please add this translation if you can

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked‌: "point of intersection of an axis and a curve"

• Finnish: leikkauspiste (fi)

See also

• Mathworld article on vertices of polyhedra
• Mathworld article on vertices of polygons

References

• “vertex”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.
• “vertex”, in Merriam-Webster.com Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.

French

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin vertex.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /vɛʁ.tɛks/

• Audio (France (Vosges)):

  (file)

Noun

vertex m (invariable)

1. (anatomy) vertex

Further reading

• Littré, Émile (1873–1878), “vertex”, in Dictionnaire de la langue française, Paris: L. Hachette
• “vertex”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012

Latin

Alternative forms

• vortex (archaic)

Etymology

From vertō (“to turn around, turn about”).

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): [ˈwɛr.tɛks]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): [ˈvɛr.teks]

Noun

vertex m (genitive verticis); third declension

1. whirl, whirlpool, eddy, vortex
2. eddy of wind or flame, whirlwind, coil of flame
3. (literally, anatomy) top, crown of the head
4. (poetic) head

   vacuus vertex ― an empty head

5. pole of the heavens (north or south)
6. highest point, top, peak, summit (of a mountain, house, tree, etc.)

   Synonyms: cacūmen, apex, culmen, fastīgium, summitās

   Antonym: fundus

   a vertice ― from above/at the top

   in verticem ― upright/vertically

7. (figurative, poetic) highest, uttermost, greatest
8. (Neo-Latin, mathematics) vertex

Inflection

Third-declension noun.

	singular	plural
nominative	vertex	verticēs
genitive	verticis	verticum
dative	verticī	verticibus
accusative	verticem	verticēs
ablative	vertice	verticibus
vocative	vertex	verticēs

Derived terms

• bivertex
• quinquevertex
• verticillus
• verticōsus
• verticula

Descendants

• Lombard: vierdza, verdza, értes, vértisa (“parting of the hair”)
• Piedmontese: verdz̆a (“peak”)
• Romansh: viertsch, vertscha

Early borrowings:

• → Old French: vertiz (“top of the head”)
• → Old Occitan: vertitz, vertis

Later borrowings:

• → English: vertex
• → French: vertex
• → Italian: vertice
• → Portuguese: vértice
• → Sicilian: vèrtici
• → Spanish: vértice

References

• “vertex”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “vertex”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891), An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• "vertex", in Charles du Fresne du Cange, Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887)
• “vertex”, in Gaffiot, Félix (1934), Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
• Carl Meißner; Henry William Auden (1894), Latin Phrase-Book‎^[1], London: Macmillan and Co.
  • the pole: vertex caeli, axis caeli, cardo caeli
    
• Dizionario Latino, Olivetti
• Walther von Wartburg (1928–2002), “vĕrtex”, in Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch (in German), volume 14: U–Z, page 320
• Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1911), “vĕrtex”, in Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch (in German), page 706

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French vertex, from Latin vertex.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈver.teks/

Noun

vertex n (uncountable)

1. vertex

Declension

singular only	indefinite	definite
nominative-accusative	vertex	vertexul
genitive-dative	vertex	vertexului
vocative	vertexule

Further reading

• “vertex”, in DEX online—Dicționare ale limbii române (Dictionaries of the Romanian language) (in Romanian), 2004–2026