A shape that looks like a U can be in any direction. there are certain terms relating to a parabola for example: latus
rectum, directrix, focus, locus, axis of symmetry and roots. Parabolas can be represented algebraically in the form of a quadratic function.
Latus
rectum is the
line that passes
right through the focus horizontally
Axis of symmetry is the line that passes through the vertex vertically
Focus is a point below or above or on the side of the vertex
Directrix is a line that is derived by -a and is on the opposite side of focus
Roots are the points on the x axis that intersect the parabola