| 释义 |
elliptical, a.|ɛˈlɪptɪkəl|
[f. prec. + -al1.]
1. That has the form of an ellipse; pertaining to ellipses.
1656Hobbes Six Less. Wks. 1845 VII. 305 The cone described by the subtense of the..elliptical line. 1755B. Martin Mag. Arts & Sc. i. v. 23 They all move in Orbits, which are more or less oval, or (as the Astronomers call it) Elliptical. 1812–6J. Playfair Nat. Phil. II. 185 The orbit of the fourth satellite is sensibly elliptical. 1831Brewster Optics xxvii. 225, I have been enabled to refer all the phenomena of the action of metals to a new species of polarisation, which I have called elliptical polarisation. 1878Huxley Physiogr. xx. 354 In the great elliptical path of the earth the sun occupies one of these foci.
b. elliptical compasses: = elliptic compasses. † elliptical dial, a small pocket-dial (Kersey). Also in Bailey 1721–1790, Chambers 1751.
c. Comb.
1845Lindley Sch. Bot. v. (1858) 53 Leaves *elliptical-lanceolate.
2. Gram. Of sentences and phrases: Defective, lacking a word or words which must be supplied to complete the sense. Of style, etc.: Characterized by ellipsis.
1778R. Lowth Isaiah (ed. 12) 313 note, It was necessary to add a word or two in the version to supply the elliptical expression of the Hebrew. 1828Whately Rhetoric in Encycl. Metrop. 284/1 Aristotle's Style..is frequently so elliptical as to be dry and obscure. 1848Mill Pol. Econ. i. iii. §1 (1876) 29 Production and productive, are..elliptical expressions, involving the idea of a something produced. 1884Traill in Macm. Mag. Oct. 441/1 Carlyle's violently elliptical manner.
3. Omitted by ellipsis. ? nonce-use.
1829W. Duncan Greek Test. Pref., He has given at the foot of the page..many of the principal elliptical words.
▸ elliptical trainer n. orig. U.S. an exercise machine resembling an exercise bicycle with no saddle, on which the two pedals move in the figure of an ellipse when operated by the user's feet, and which is designed to reduce joint stress caused by the impact of the foot on a hard surface.
1997Wisconsin State Jrnl. 26 Jan. 10 g/4 *Elliptical trainers,..a combination of ski, treadmill and climbing machines, offer a more gentle rotation for tender and tired body joints. 1999Sunday Times (Nexis) 25 Apr. Try to use an EFX Precor elliptical trainer (a cross between a bike and stepper) to keep your cardio workouts going, without putting pressure on your injury. 2001Cosmopolitan Dec. 84/1 Rather than any one injury, repeated minor stresses—misusing anything from weights to elliptical trainers—are most often to blame.
▸ elliptical machine n. orig. U.S. = elliptical trainer n. at Additions.
1996N.Y. Times 21 Aug. c3/5 Cross Conditioning Systems..has teamed with Reebok..to make the first *elliptical machine that also works the upper body. 2005Spectator (Hamilton, Ont.) (Nexis) 8 Sept. g6 Good exercises include an exercise bike or an elliptical machine or any low-impact cardiovascular activity. |