determinant

Estimated CEFR level: C2 — Proficiency

Estimated from word frequency; not an official CEFR classification.

Definition

noun a determining or causal element or factor
noun the site on the surface of an antigen molecule to which an antibody attaches itself
noun a square matrix used to solve simultaneous equations

Borrowed from French déterminant, equivalent to determine + -ant.

The events [Math: e_{1}, e_{2}, ..., e_{n}] I shall call "determinants" of the system. — Mysticism and Logic and Other Essays, Bertrand Russell
In that edition rent, along with profit and wages, was treated as a third determinant of value. — A history of economic doctrines : $b from the time of the physiocrats to the present day, Charles Gide
So the thinker will have to order his life with them as its chief determinants, or else remain inwardly discordant and unhappy. — The Will to Believe, and Other Essays in Popular Philosophy, William James

determiner, determinative, determining factor, causal factor

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