Home / All Definitions / Trigonometry / Unit Circle Trig Definitions Definition
Unit circle trig definitions are a set of definitions of the trigonometric functions sine, cosine, tangent, cosecant, secant, and cotangent all of which are derived from the unit circle. The unit circle plays a significant role in several different areas of mathematics. In particular the functions of trigonometry are most simply defined using the unit circle. As shown in the figure below, a point p on the terminal side of an angle θ in angle standard position measured along an arc of the unit circle has as its coordinates (cos θ, sin θ) so that cos θ is the horizontal coordinate of p and sin θ is its vertical component. As a result of this definition, the trigonometric functions are periodic with period 2π.
“Unit Circle.” From Wolfram MathWorld, mathworld.wolfram.com/UnitCircle.html.
Our site is presently undergoing maintenance in order to upgrade the site.
Please be patient and understand that it will take some time to complete this work and random things may not work as intended.
Check out our free browser extension for Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Safari, & Opera.
For more information about our browser extension visit here!
Add Math Converse as app to your home screen.
Take a photo of the qr code to share this page or to open it quickly on your phone: