Definition of DELTA

delta

Meanings

Plural: deltas

Noun

  • a low triangular area of alluvial deposits where a river divides before entering a larger body of water
    • "the Mississippi River delta"
    • "the Nile delta"
  • an object shaped like an equilateral triangle
  • the 4th letter of the Greek alphabet
  • The fourth letter of the modern Greek alphabet Δ, δ.
  • A landform at the mouth of a river where it empties into a body of water.
  • alternative letter-case form of Delta from the NATO/ICAO Phonetic Alphabet.
  • The symbol Δ; A change in a quantity, likely from "d" for "difference".
  • The rate of change in an option value with respect to the underlying asset's price.
  • A value in delta notation indicating the relative abundances of isotopes.
  • The set of differences between two versions of a file.
  • A small but noticeable effect. Compare epsilon.
  • The angle subtended at the center of a circular arc.
  • A type of cargo bike that has one wheel in front and two in back.
  • The closed figure produced by connecting three coils or circuits successively, end for end, especially in a three-phase system.
  • A military unit, nominally headed by a colonel, equivalent to a USAF operations wing, or an army regiment.
  • a star that is usually the fourth brightest of a constellation.
  • one of four baryons consisting of up and down quarks with a combined spin of 3/2: Δ⁺⁺ (uuu), Δ⁺ (uud), Δ⁰ (udd), or Δ⁻ (ddd)
  • Ellipsis of delta variant (variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus).

Verb

  • To calculate the differences between the characters in an enciphered text and the characters a fixed number of positions previous.
  • To compare two versions of the same file in order to determine where they differ (where a programmer has made edits).

Origin / Etymology

From Ancient Greek δέλτα (délta), borrowed from a Phoenician word for "door", ultimately from Proto-Semitic *dalt-. Doublet of dalet.
* (river): from the triangular shape of the majuscule Greek letter delta Δ
* (USSF): from the delta wing, symbol of the USSF, a triangular wing, shaped like the majuscule Greek letter delta Δ

Synonyms

garrison

Scrabble Score: 6

delta is a valid Scrabble (US) TWL word
delta is a valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
delta is a valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary

Words With Friends Score: 7

delta is a valid Words With Friends word