The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:
Arithmetic \A*rith"me*tic\, n. [OE. arsmetike, OF. arismetique,
L. arithmetica, fr. Gr. ? (sc. ?), fr. ? arithmetical, fr. ?
to number, fr. ? number, prob. fr. same root as E. arm, the
idea of counting coming from that of fitting, attaching. See
Arm. The modern Eng. and French forms are accommodated to
the Greek.]
1. The science of numbers; the art of computation by figures.
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2. A book containing the principles of this science.
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Arithmetic of sines, trigonometry.
Political arithmetic, the application of the science of
numbers to problems in civil government, political
economy, and social science.
Universal arithmetic, the name given by Sir Isaac Newton to
algebra.
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