Normal (geometry) Normal (geometry) In geometry, a normal is an object such as a line or vector that is perpendicular to a given object. For example, in two dimensions, the normal line to a curve at a given point is the line perpendicular to the tangent line to the curve at the point. In three dimensions, a surface normal, or simply normal, to a surface at a point "P" is a vector that is perpendicular to the tangent plane to that surface at "P". The word "normal" is also used as an adjective: a line normal to a plane, the normal component
Chord (geometry) Chord (geometry) A chord of a circle is a straight line segment whose endpoints both lie on the circle. A secant line, or just "secant", is the infinite line extension of a chord. More generally, a chord is a line segment joining two points on any curve, for instance an ellipse. A chord that passes through a circle's center point is the circle's diameter. Every diameter is a chord, but not every chord is a diameter. The word "chord" is from the Latin "chorda" meaning "bowstring". Among properties of chords of a circle are the following: The midpoints of a