noun

tet

noun

Short for tetralogy of Fallot, a congenital heart defect involving four related structural problems in the heart.

"The infant was diagnosed with tet shortly after birth and scheduled for surgery."

A tetrahedron, or a tetrahedral unit used in engineering and 3D modeling calculations.

"The mesh was built from thousands of tiny tets rather than cube-shaped elements."

Short for tetra, a small brightly colored freshwater aquarium fish.

"He added a school of tets to brighten up the community tank."

How to Use Tet

Learner’s notes

In plain EnglishA short technical clipping that means different things depending on context: a heart condition, a 3D shape, or a small fish.

Common mistake

Don't confuse this technical clipping with "Tet," the capitalized name of the Vietnamese New Year festival and the wartime Tet Offensive — those are unrelated proper nouns.

Word Forms

tets plural, tets plural, tets plural, tets plural, Tets plural

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The infant was diagnosed with _____ shortly after birth and scheduled for surgery.

Etymology

A clipped form of "tetralogy," "tetrahedron," or "tetra," depending on the field.

Rhymes for tet

quartet

See all rhymes for tet →