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nutation
noun
- the act or instance of nodding the head
- a periodic variation in the inclination from the vertical of the rotation axis of a spinning body, as a top
- Astron. such a small, periodic oscillation of the earth's axis which slightly varies or nods the earth's precessional motion
- Bot. a slight rotatory movement, as in the stem of a plant, due to the varying rates of growth in its parts
Related Forms:
- nutational adjective
See nutation in American Heritage Dictionary 4
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