apex

apex 1 Apex, vertex are so often used interchangeably with reference to the tip or top point of a cone, a pyramid, or a conic section that a fundamental difference in implications is often ignored.

Apex has particular reference to the sharpness or angularity of the point or tip; it may or may not in its literal application to things imply that this is the highest point

{

the apex of the heart is its lower and pointed end

}

{

the apex of a lung is its upper cone-shaped end

}

Apex may also refer to the converging point of two lines whether they extend in a vertical plane or not

{

apex of a leaf

}

{

apex of a vein in a mine

}

Vertex as a rule, and apart from some technical senses in mathematics, implies a base (real or assumed) and therefore a top or highest point. This implication is retained when the word is applied to concrete things; thus, the vertex of the head or of the skull is the highest point or the upper end of its axis; vertex in astronomy is the zenith either with reference to the observer or to the particular body under observation. 2 peak, *summit, culmination, pinnacle, climax, acme, meridian, zenith, apogee