a variable quantity that can be resolved into components
"The physicist calculated how to resolve the force vector into its horizontal and vertical components to analyze the projectile's motion."
a straight line segment whose length is magnitude and whose orientation in space is direction
"The physicist drew a vector on the board to represent the force's exact magnitude and its precise upward direction."
any agent (person or animal or microorganism) that carries and transmits a disease
"mosquitos are vectors of malaria and yellow fever"
"fleas are vectors of the plague"
"aphids are transmitters of plant diseases"
"when medical scientists talk about vectors they are usually talking about insects"
(genetics) a virus or other agent that is used to deliver DNA to a cell
"Scientists engineered a harmless adenovirus to act as a vector, delivering healthy genes directly into the patient's liver cells to treat the genetic disorder."
A directed quantity, one with both magnitude and direction; the signed difference between two points.
"The displacement vector from my home to the park indicates exactly how far I need to walk and which way to go."
In plain English: A vector is any quantity that has both a size and a direction, like wind speed blowing toward the north.
"The weather forecast predicted that a strong wind vector would push clouds toward the coast."
To set (particularly an aircraft) on a course toward a selected point.
"The pilot had to vector the jet around severe thunderstorms before it could land safely at the airport."
In plain English: To vector something means to direct it toward a specific goal or target.
"The disease vectored itself from person to person through the air."
Usage: Use this verb specifically when directing an aircraft or vehicle to steer toward a target destination, often involving adjustments against wind currents. It is distinct from simply flying straight ahead and implies active navigation guidance rather than passive movement.
The word vector comes from Latin vector, meaning "carrier" or "transporter," which entered English through learned borrowing. While it originally referred to a person who carries something, the mathematical sense was coined by William Rowan Hamilton in 1846 and later extended to describe how diseases or ideas are passed along.