Meanings
plural Mercator projections
- An orthomorphic map projection, in which meridians appear at right-angles to the equator, and lines of latitude are horizontal lines whose distance from each other increases with distance from the equator.
In the Mercator projection, the line of intersection between the cylinder and the sphere is the equator, while in the Traverse Mercator this line is a meridian.
2018, Julio Sanchez, Maria P. Canton, Space Image Processing, Routledge, →ISBN, page 1911 more example
Most digital maps are displayed in the Web Mercator projection but this is slowly changing. Web Mercator became the default standard for web mapping when the major online map services adopted it, like Google and OpenStreetMap.
2020, Gretchen N. Peterson, GIS Cartography […] , 3rd edition, CRC Press, →ISBN, page 144Synonyms: Mercator
Synonyms & antonyms
nounAn orthomorphic map projection, in which meridians appear at right-angles to the equator, and lines of latitude are horizontal lines whose distance from each other increases with distance from the equator.
More synonyms by meaning
nouna map projection of the earth onto a cylinder; areas appear greater the farther they are from the equator
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Latinmercātor“merchant”
- EnglishMercator projection
From Gerardus Mercator, Latinized name of Gerard de Cremer (1512–1594), Flemish cartographer and mathematician, from Latin mercātor (“merchant”).
More words from Latin
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
Mercator projection. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Mercator%20projection
“Mercator projection.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Mercator%20projection. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Mercator projection,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Mercator%20projection.
Source: Mercator projection on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.