Arbitrary vs X - What's the difference?
arbitrary | x |
(usually, of a decision) Based on individual discretion or judgment; not based on any objective distinction, perhaps even made at random.
Determined by impulse rather than reason; heavy-handed.
(mathematics) Any and all possible.
Determined by independent arbiter.
Anything arbitrary, such as an arithmetical value or a fee.
The twenty-fourth letter of the .
Image:Latin X.png, Capital and lowercase versions of X , in normal and italic type
Image:Fraktur letter X.png, Uppercase and lowercase X in Fraktur
Roman numerals
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As an adjective arbitrary
is (usually|of a decision) based on individual discretion or judgment; not based on any objective distinction, perhaps even made at random.As a noun arbitrary
is anything arbitrary, such as an arithmetical value or a fee.As a letter x is
the twenty-fourth letter of the.As a symbol x is
voiceless velar fricative.arbitrary
English
Adjective
(arbitrariness) (en adjective)- Benjamin Franklin's designation of "positive" and "negative" to different charges was arbitrary . In fact, electrons flow in the opposite direction to conventional current.
- The decision to use 18 years as the legal age of adulthood was arbitrary , as both age 17 and 19 were reasonable alternatives.
- "The Russian trials were Stalin's purges, with which he attempted to consolidate his power. Like most people in the West, I believed these show trials to be the arbitrary acts of a cruel dictator." (
Max Born, Letters to Einstein
)
- The equation is true for an arbitrary value of x.
- To secure food safety, there should first be a national standard to arbitrarily state what is wholesome and what is not; second, the final buyer should know exactly what he is purchasing. (
The World's Work ...: a history of our time
)