Secant is a term in mathematics. It can refer to: Euclid, a famous Greek mathematician known as the father of geometry, is shown here in detail from The School of Athens by Raphael. ...
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If the secant to a curve is defined by two points, P and Q, with P fixed and Q variable, as Q approaches P along the curve, the direction of the secant approaches that of the tangent at P (assuming there is just one).
Draw a secant line to the unit circle (centered at the origin) that passes through the origin and through (cos θ, sin θ), the point on the unit circle at an angle of θ.
The absolute value of the trigonometricsecant of θ is equal to the length of a segment of the secant line running from the origin to the line x = 1.