isovalue
|i-so-val-ue|
🇺🇸
/ˈaɪsoʊˌvæljuː/
🇬🇧
/ˈaɪsəʊˌvæljuː/
equal value / same-value contour
Etymology
'isovalue' originates from a combination of Greek and English: the prefix 'iso-' comes from Greek 'isos', where 'isos' meant 'equal', and 'value' comes from Old French 'value' (from Latin 'valere').
The element 'iso-' is from Greek 'isos' meaning 'equal'. 'Value' evolved from Latin 'valere' (to be worth) to Old French 'value' and then into Middle and Modern English as 'value'. The compound appeared in technical English (often hyphenated as 'iso-value') and later commonly written as the single word 'isovalue'.
Initially a literal compound meaning 'equal value'; over time it acquired specific technical senses (e.g., an economic isovalue line or a graphics/scientific 'isovalue' threshold) while retaining the core idea of 'sameness of value'.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
a contour (line or curve) connecting points that have the same monetary value or revenue given fixed prices; often used in economics as an 'isovalue line' showing combinations of outputs that yield equal total value.
The farmers plotted an isovalue line to see which combinations of wheat and corn would give the same revenue.
Synonyms
Noun 2
a scalar threshold value used in scientific computing and computer graphics to extract surfaces (isosurfaces) or contours from volumetric data; the chosen 'isovalue' defines where the surface lies (points with that exact scalar value).
Set the isovalue to 0.5 to generate the isosurface representing the 0.5 density region.
Synonyms
Noun 3
a general term for any curve or surface along which a given quantity (called 'value') is constant; essentially a 'level set' with respect to some scalar field called value.
On the map, the isovalues indicate regions where the measured parameter remains constant.
Synonyms
Last updated: 2025/12/10 11:59