tropic (1) definition - Dictionary

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tropic (1)

trop·ic [ tróppik ]

noun (plural trop·ics)

Definition:

1. line of latitude: a line of latitude on the Earth's globe either 23º 26′ north of the equator tropic of Cancer or 23º 26′ south tropic of Capricorn

2. astronomy circle on celestial sphere: either of two circles on the celestial sphere that have the same latitudes and mark the limits of the apparent north-and-south movement of the Sun. The tropics lie in the same planes as the tropic of Cancer and the tropic of Capricorn.

plural noun trop·ics or Trop·ics

Definition:

area between tropics: the area between or near the tropic of Cancer and the tropic of Capricorn

[Early 16th century. Via Old French tropique< Latin tropicus< Greek tropē "turn"; from the ancient belief that the sun "turned back" at the tropics of Cancer and Capricorn]

trop·ic adjective

Cultural Note


	Tropic of Cancer, a novel (1934) by Henry Miller. It is an autobiographical account of a struggling U.S. writer's sojourn in 1930s' Paris. Its focus on the protagonist's erotic encounters gained it notoriety and led to it being banned in both the United States and Britain until the 1960s, but its openness was an inspiration for many contemporary writers.