arc length

Also called: arc

The distance measured along the curve itself.

The distance traveled along the curved boundary, as opposed to across it. Arc length is always longer than the chord that spans the same curve, and the two are frequently confused in older descriptions.

Where you'll see it

Surveying Basics

How to Read a Metes and Bounds Description

Deeds are written in their own language. Here is how to walk one line by line — and what the closure math is actually telling you at the end.

Related terms in Curves

chord concave curve delta angle radius tangent

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