Descartes

[ dey-kahrt; French dey-kart ]
/ deɪˈkɑrt; French deɪˈkart /

noun

Re·né [ruh-ney; French ruh-ney] /rəˈneɪ; French rəˈneɪ/,1596–1650, French philosopher and mathematician.

Example sentences from the Web for descartes

British Dictionary definitions for descartes

Descartes
/ (ˈdeɪˌkɑːt, French dekart) /

noun

René (rəne). 1596–1650, French philosopher and mathematician. He provided a mechanistic basis for the philosophical theory of dualism and is regarded as the founder of modern philosophy. He also founded analytical geometry and contributed greatly to the science of optics. His works include Discours de la méthode (1637), Meditationes de Prima Philosophia (1641), and Principia Philosophiae (1644)

Other words from Descartes

Related adjective: Cartesian

Scientific definitions for descartes

Descartes
[ dā-kärt ]
René 1596-1650

French mathematician and philosopher who discovered that the position of a point can be determined by coordinates, a discovery that laid the foundation for analytic geometry.