Involutes

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A shape or curve characterized by the property of being formed from the end of a taut string unwinding from a cylinder or similar object
2. In geometry, the depiction of a curve traced by a point attached to a string as it rolls along a fixed surface
3. Referring to figures that exhibit properties derived from or associated with the mathematical concept of involution and its related applications in various fields

Etymology: "Involutes" is the plural of "involute", a noun that has taken on a specialized mathematical sense. The base word was borrowed from Latin "involutus", the past participle of "involvere", meaning "to roll up" or "to wrap in". Its literal sense of something curled or coiled up carries over into geometry, where an involute is a curve traced by the end of a taut string as it unwinds from another curve, so the plural refers to several such curves or figures.