In English, ‘180 degrees' and ‘360 degrees' are terms often used to describe a change. But they are often confused, although they have opposite meanings. Read on to discover what each one means and how to use them.
Both references are to the mathematics of angles, which we'll explain below. But in short:
On the surface, this may appear to be a geometry question, and on the surface, it is. But it also has a meaning in everyday English.
It is often said that someone has done a '180' or a '360', which refers to a change in behavior. It's a common idiom. A review of your mathematics knowledge is required to understand what the saying means.
Sometimes, these two sayings are also used literally.
For example, you could use this saying for boarders:
Of course, you could also use both terms in the mathematical sense to refer to an angle, shape, or panoramic view, for example.
The correct saying is 'a 180-degree change' or ‘360 degree change'. But sometimes you might just say 'a 180' or 'a 360', with the degree bit implied.
The word 'degree' rhymes with 'brie,' 'knee,' or 'flee,' It's pronounced:
[ dih-gree ]
Or, according to the International Phonetics Alphabet, like this:
/ dɪˈgri /
It's time to look at some examples of these two idioms used in a sentence, so you can better understand how to use them in context. So here goes.
The 360-degree panoramic view of the city on the London Eye made my day.
Well, this is a surprise! You've done a complete 180 and reverted back to the views you used to have.
He threw himself into an impressive 180-degree rotation.
We've drifted apart since he did a 180 and completely changed the way he behaves.
A circle has a 360-degree angle.
So now you know the difference between 180 and 360 degrees. Let's summarize:
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