cosec

Units & Measurements abbreviation · Math

cosec
Stands forCosecant
CategoriesUnits & Measurements

cosec stands for Cosecant, a math abbreviation.

The form of cosecant used in British, Indian, Australian and many other textbooks, identical in meaning to the American csc: cosec θ = 1/sin θ.

Example: Prove that cosec²θ − cot²θ = 1.

Usage notes

Indian board exams and British A-level papers use cosec throughout. The identity cosec²θ = 1 + cot²θ follows from dividing sin²θ + cos²θ = 1 by sin²θ. The longer form makes the link to sine through the prefix "co-" easier to see than csc does.

More math abbreviations

  • bn – Billion
  • BODMAS – Brackets, Orders, Division/Multiplication, Addition/Subtraction
  • C – Complex numbers
  • cis – Cosine plus i sine
  • Cor – Corollary
  • cos – Cosine
  • cosh – Hyperbolic cosine
  • cot – Cotangent
  • CPCTC – Corresponding parts of congruent triangles are congruent
  • csc – Cosecant
  • deg – Degree (angle)
  • det – Determinant

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