axis
part of speech
noun (an axis, axes)
meaning for a pupil
1) An axis is an imaginary straight line that something spins around, like the Earth's axis. tree →
2) In maths, an axis is one of the main lines on a graph, the x-axis going across and the y-axis going up. tree →
3) An axis of symmetry is a line that cuts a shape into two matching halves. tree →
sense in the lessons
In science, the Earth spins on its axis once a day, making day and night, and its tilted axis causes the seasons. In maths, graphs and charts have a horizontal axis and a vertical axis, each with a label and a scale; coordinates are read along the x-axis first, then the y-axis. Phrases: x-axis, y-axis, axis of symmetry, spin on its axis.
examples
- The Earth spins on its axis once every 24 hours. tree →
- The Earth's axis is tilted, which gives us seasons. tree →
- Label the x-axis «days» and the y-axis «temperature». tree →
- The point (3, 5) is 3 along the x-axis and 5 up. tree →
- A square has four axes of symmetry. tree →
- Draw the axis of symmetry on the butterfly. tree →
- The bar chart's vertical axis goes up in fives. tree →
- A spinning top turns around its axis. tree →
note
Plural: axes (said «AX-eez»). Do not confuse with «axe/ax», a tool for chopping, whose plural is also spelled axes. In maths problems, read the scale on each axis carefully; the steps may be 2, 5 or 10, not 1.
In the corpora
- Earth's axis is tilted by about 23.4 degrees, and that tilt, not the distance from the Sun, causes the seasons.
- The Earth is a huge ball that spins around an imaginary line through its middle, called its axis.
- The Earth spins around its axis once in about 24 hours.
- The Earth's axis is tilted by about 23 and a half degrees.
- The axis keeps pointing the same way in space all year round.
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «axis» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.