A straight line intersecting a circle at two points is a

In circle geometry, a straight line's relationship to a circle is classified by how many points it shares with the circle's circumference. A tangent is a straight line that touches the circle at exactly one point. A secant is a straight line that intersects the circle at exactly two distinct points. A chord and a circular segment describe pieces created by such an intersection, not the line itself: a chord is the line segment joining two points on the circle, and a segment is the plane region enclosed between a chord and the arc it cuts off.

The question describes a straight line intersecting a circle at two points. That is exactly the standard definition of a secant, so the correct term is Secant.

Each of the other terms describes something different:

• Tangent — touches the circle at only one point, not two.

• Chord — is the line segment joining the two intersection points, not the full unbounded straight line through them.

• Segment — is the plane region enclosed between a chord and the arc, not a straight line at all.