Definition:Common Tangent

Definition

Let $C_1$ and $C_2$ be plane curves.

Let $\LL$ be a straight line which is tangent to both $C_1$ and $C_2$.

Then $\LL$ is a common tangent to $C_1$ and $C_2$.

Also see

• Results about common tangents can be found here.

Sources

• 1998: David Nelson: The Penguin Dictionary of Mathematics (2nd ed.) ... (previous) ... (next): common tangent
• 2008: David Nelson: The Penguin Dictionary of Mathematics (4th ed.) ... (previous) ... (next): common tangent