parallax
noun · verb
Simple meaning
An apparent shift in the position of two stationary objects relative to each other as viewed by an observer.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
pehruhlaksSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈpɛɹəlæks
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
An apparent shift in the position of two stationary objects relative to each other as viewed by an observer, due to a change in observer position.
astronomy
The angle of seeing of the astronomical unit.
verb
animation
To produce an illusion of levels of distance by shifting layers at different rates.
To measure (a distance) based on parallax observations.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- C2 · Proficient (estimated)
- Frequency
- Uncommon
- Typical Use
- Varies by meaning
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: An apparent shift in the position of two stationary objects relative to each other as viewed by an observer, due to a change in observer position.
Used this way, parallax is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
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Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
The parallax of a celestial body using two points on the surface of the earth as the earth rotates.
The parallax of a celestial body using two points on the surface of the earth as the earth rotates.
The parallax of a celestial body using two points in the earth's orbit around the sun as the baseline.
The maximum parallax observed when the celestial body is at the horizon.
The angle subtended by the mean equatorial radius of the Earth at a distance of one astronomical unit.
The parallax of a celestial body using two points in the earth's orbit around the sun as the baseline.
Related Words
Connected to the same idea, not synonyms.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API (CC BY-SA 3.0). Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.