absolute geometry

noun

The single (up to logical equivalence) geometry whose axiomatic system is equivalent to that of Euclidean geometry without the parallel postulate or any alternative.

Similar
Euclidean geometry without the parallel postulate

Meanings

nounabsolute geometry (plural absolute geometries)

plural absolute geometries

  1. geometryThe single (up to logical equivalence) geometry whose axiomatic system is equivalent to that of Euclidean geometry without the parallel postulate or any alternative.
    1 more example

    1993 [Princeton University Press], Donald M. Davis, The Nature and Power of Mathematics, 2004, Dover, page 85, Recall that absolute geometry is the set of statements that can be deduced from Euclid's first four postulates. Then existence of parallel lines is certainly a theorem of absolute geometry, while the question being addressed by most of the mathematicians discussed in this section is whether uniqueness of parallels is also a theorem of absolute geometry.

  2. geometryAny geometry whose axiomatic system extends that of absolute geometry (in the singular sense) and neither assumes nor contradicts the parallel postulate.

    1970, J. F. Rigby, Axioms for Absolute Geometry, III, Canadian Journal of Mathematics, Vol. XXII, No. 1, Canadian Mathematical Congress, University of Toronto Press, page 185, A discussion of one-dimensional absolute geometries, with examples, will be given in a separate paper.

Synonyms & antonyms

Similar
Euclidean geometry without the parallel postulate

Origin

From 1832; introduced by Hungarian mathematician János Bolyai (1802—1860).

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Finnish absoluuttinen geometria
  • absoluuttinen geometriaEuclidean geometry without the parallel postulate
Japanese 絶対幾何学
  • 絶対幾何学Euclidean geometry without the parallel postulate
Polish geometria absolutna
  • geometria absolutnaEuclidean geometry without the parallel postulate
Russian абсолю́тная геоме́трия
  • абсолю́тная геоме́трия (absoljútnaja geométrija)Euclidean geometry without the parallel postulate
Cite this entry
APA

absolute geometry. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/absolute%20geometry

MLA

“absolute geometry.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/absolute%20geometry. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “absolute geometry,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/absolute%20geometry.

Source: absolute geometry on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.