Ordinary differential equation
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![The trajectory of a projectile launched from a cannon follows a curve determined by an ordinary differential equation that is derived from Newton's second law.](/Images/godic/202502/01/Parabolic_trajectory.svg1941.png")
In mathematics, an ordinary differential equation (ODE) is a differential equation containing one or more functions of one independent variable and its derivatives. The term "ordinary" is used in contrast with the term partial differential equation which may be with respect to more than one independent variable.