Search Result for "variable_quantity":
Wordnet 3.0

NOUN (1)

1. a quantity that can assume any of a set of values;
[syn: variable, variable quantity]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Variable \Va"ri*a*ble\, a. [L. variabilis: cf. F. variable.] 1. Having the capacity of varying or changing; capable of alternation in any manner; changeable; as, variable winds or seasons; a variable quantity. [1913 Webster] 2. Liable to vary; too susceptible of change; mutable; fickle; unsteady; inconstant; as, the affections of men are variable; passions are variable. [1913 Webster] Lest that thy love prove likewise variable. --Shak. [1913 Webster] His heart, I know, how variable and vain! --Milton. [1913 Webster] Variable exhaust (Steam Eng.), a blast pipe with an adjustable opening. Variable quantity (Math.), a variable. Variable-rate mortgage (Finance), a mortgage whose percentage interest rate varies depending on some agreed standard, such as the prime rate; -- used often in financing the purchase of a home. Such a mortgage usually has a lower initial interest rate than a fixed-rate mortgage, and this permits buyers of a home to finance the purchase a house of higher price than would be possible with a fixed-rate loan. Variable stars (Astron.), fixed stars which vary in their brightness, usually in more or less uniform periods. [1913 Webster] Syn: Changeable; mutable; fickle; wavering; unsteady; versatile; inconstant. [1913 Webster]
WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

variable quantity n 1: a quantity that can assume any of a set of values [syn: variable, variable quantity]