algebra

 
Pronunciation: /ˈaldʒɪbrə/

noun

[mass noun]
  • the part of mathematics in which letters and other general symbols are used to represent numbers and quantities in formulae and equations: courses in algebra, geometry, and Newtonian physics
  • a system of algebra based on given axioms.

Derivatives

algebraist

Pronunciation: /ˌaldʒɪˈbreɪɪst/
noun

Origin:

late Middle English: from Italian, Spanish, and medieval Latin, from Arabic al-jabr 'the reunion of broken parts', 'bone-setting', from jabara 'reunite, restore'. The original sense, 'the surgical treatment of fractures', probably came via Spanish, in which it survives; the mathematical sense comes from the title of a book, ‘ilm al-jabr wa'l-muqābala 'the science of restoring what is missing and equating like with like', by the mathematician al-Ḵwārizmī (see algorithm)