diastem

D2I1A1S1T1E1M3

noun

Intervening space; interval.

Scrabble 10

Meanings

noundiastem (plural diastems)

plural diastems

  1. Intervening space; interval.
    1 more example

    A space curve contained between two concentric spheres and with its concave side facing always toward the common center of the two spheres is said to be periplegmatic. The radius vector of a periplegmatic curve is of length between the radii of the two spheres. At the maxima and minima of the radius vector the curve touches respectively the larger or smaller of the two limiting spheres. The radial distance between such a maximum and minimum is called the diastem.

    1972, Yusuke Hagihara, Celestial Mechanics: Perturbation Theory, MIT Press
  2. obsoleteentertainmentAn interval.
  3. geographyA minor depositional break.

Origin

  1. Latindiastema
  2. Englishdiastem

From Latin diastema.

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

Cite this entry
APA

diastem. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/diastem

MLA

“diastem.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/diastem. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “diastem,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/diastem.

Source: diastem on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.