trajectory
n. countablen. the path that a moving object follows through the air or space. It can also describe the direction in which someone's life or career is moving.
n. the path followed by a projectile flying or an object moving under the action of given forces. Often used metaphorically to describe the developmental path of a career, economy, or historical event.
The rocket's trajectory was tracked by computers on the ground.
The young athlete's career trajectory changed significantly after she won the national championship at age sixteen.
By calculating the initial velocity and the angle of launch, the engineers were able to predict the satellite's trajectory with remarkable precision despite the atmospheric interference.
From New Latin trāiectōria f (“trajectory”) (used by Newton), the feminine of trāiectōrius (“of or pertaining to throwing across”), from Latin trāiectus (“thrown over or across”), past participle of trāiciō, from trans- (“across, beyond”) (see trans-) + iaciō (“to throw”) (from Proto-Indo-European *(H)yeh₁- (“to throw, impel”)). Middle French and Middle English had trajectorie (“end of a funnel”), from Latin trāiectōrium.
Often paired with the adjectives 'upward', 'downward', or 'steep'.