point (pɔɪnt
)
Definitions
noun
- a dot or tiny mark
- a location, spot, or position
- any dot or mark used in writing or printing, such as a decimal point or a full stop
- short for vowel point
- the sharp tapered end of a pin, knife, etc
- a pin, needle, or other object having such a point
- mathematics
- a geometric element having no dimensions and whose position in space is located by means of its coordinates
- a location ⇒
point of inflection
- a promontory, usually smaller than a cape
- a specific condition or degree
- a moment ⇒
at that point he left the room
- an important or fundamental reason, aim, etc ⇒
the point of this exercise is to train new teachers
- an essential element or thesis in an argument ⇒
you've made your point
I take your point
- a suggestion or tip
- a detail or item
- an important or outstanding characteristic, physical attribute, etc ⇒
he has his good points
- a distinctive characteristic or quality of an animal, esp one used as a standard in judging livestock
- (often plural) any of the extremities, such as the tail, ears, or feet, of a domestic animal
- ballet (often plural) the tip of the toes
- a single unit for measuring or counting, as in the scoring of a game
- Australian Rules football an informal name for behind (sense 11)
- printing a unit of measurement equal to one twelfth of a pica, or approximately 0.01384 inch. There are approximately 72 points to the inch
- finance
- a unit of value used to quote security and commodity prices and their fluctuations
- a percentage unit sometimes payable by a borrower as a premium on a loan
- nautical
- one of the 32 marks on the circumference of a compass card indicating direction
- the angle of 11°15′ between two adjacent marks
- a point on the horizon indicated by such a mark
- cricket
- a fielding position at right angles to the batsman on the off side and relatively near the pitch
- a fielder in this position
- any of the numbers cast in the first throw in craps with which one neither wins nor loses by throwing them: 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10
- either of the two electrical contacts that make or break the current flow in the distributor of an internal-combustion engine
- British (often plural) a junction of railway tracks in which a pair of rails can be moved so that a train can be directed onto either of two lines
switch - (often plural) a piece of ribbon, cord, etc, with metal tags at the end: used during the 16th and 17th centuries to fasten clothing
- backgammon a place or position on the board
- British
- short for power point
- an informal name for socket (sense 2)
- an aggressive position adopted in bayonet or sword drill
- military the position at the head of a body of troops, or a person in this position
- the position of the body of a pointer or setter when it discovers game
- boxing a mark awarded for a scoring blow, knockdown, etc
- any diacritic used in a writing system, esp in a phonetic transcription, to indicate modifications of vowels or consonants
- jewellery a unit of weight equal to 0.01 carat
- the act of pointing
- ice hockey the position just inside the opponents' blue line
- See beside the point
- See case in point
- See in point of
- See make a point of
- See not to put too fine a point on it
- See on the point of
- See score points off
- See stretch a point
- See to the point
- See up to a point
verb
- at or to to indicate the location or direction of by or as by extending (a finger or other pointed object) towards it ⇒
he pointed to the front door
don't point that gun at me
- (intr; usually foll by at or to) to indicate or identify a specific person or thing among several ⇒
he pointed at the bottle he wanted
all evidence pointed to Donald as the murderer
- (tr) to direct or cause to go or face in a specific direction or towards a place or goal ⇒
point me in the right direction
- (tr) to sharpen or taper
- (intr) (of gun dogs) to indicate the place where game is lying by standing rigidly with the muzzle turned in its direction
- (tr) to finish or repair the joints of (brickwork, masonry, etc) with mortar or cement
- (tr) music to mark (a psalm text) with vertical lines to indicate the points at which the music changes during chanting
- to steer (a sailing vessel) close to the wind or (of a sailing vessel) to sail close to the wind
- (tr) phonetics to provide (a letter or letters) with diacritics
- (tr) to provide (a Hebrew or similar text) with vowel points
Word Origin
C13: from Old French: spot, from Latin punctum a point, from pungere to pierce; also influenced by Old French pointe pointed end, from Latin pungereSynonyms
View thesaurus entry=
essence,
meaning,
subject,
question,
matter,
heart,
theme,
import,
text,
core,
burden,
drift,
thrust,
proposition,
marrow,
crux,
gist,
main idea
nub,
pith,
=
purpose,
aim,
object,
use,
end,
reason,
goal,
design,
intention,
objective,
utility,
intent,
motive,
usefulness,
Translations
- British English:
point
A point is an idea or a fact.The research made some useful points.pɔɪnt NOUN The research made some useful points.
- Spanish:
punto
nm
- French:
pointe
nm
- German:
Sinn
nm
- Chinese: 点 n
- Arabic: نُقْطَة n
- Portuguese: ponto de vista nm
- Russian: точка nf
- Croatian: poanta nf
- Czech: jádro věci nnt
- Danish: pointe nutr
- Dutch: punt nm
- Finnish: asian ydin n
- Greek: σημείο nnt
- Italian: punto nm
- Japanese: 要点 n
- Korean: 요점 n
- Norwegian: poeng nnt
- Polish: punkt nm
- Brazilian Portuguese: ponto nm
- European Spanish:
punto
nm
- Swedish: punkt nutr
- Thai: ความคิดเห็น n
- Turkish: nokta n
- Vietnamese: điểm n
- British English:
point
If you point at something, you stick out your finger to show where it is.I pointed at the boy sitting near me.pɔɪnt VERB I pointed at the boy sitting near me.
- Spanish:
señalar
v
- French: montrer du doigt v
- German:
zeigen
v
- Chinese: 指向 vi
- Arabic: يُشِيرُ إِلى vi
- Portuguese: apontar vi
- Russian: указывать vi
- Croatian: uprijeti v
- Czech: ukázat vi ukazovat
- Danish: pege v
- Dutch: wijzen vi
- Finnish: osoittaa v
- Greek: δείχνω v
- Italian: puntare v
- Japanese: 指し示す v
- Korean: 위치(방향)를 가리키다 vi
- Norwegian: peke v
- Polish: wskazać vi wskazywać
- Brazilian Portuguese: apontar vi
- European Spanish:
señalar
v
- Swedish: peka vt
- Thai: ชี้ vi
- Turkish: göstermek vi
- Vietnamese: chỉ v
- British English:
point
The point of something is its thin, sharp end. Needles and knives have points.pɔɪnt NOUN
- French:
pointu
adj
- Arabic: حَدّ n
- Brazilian Portuguese: ponta nf
Usage examples
Brak had tested its limits right around the Citadel, but could find no weak point.
, TREASON KEEP (2001)�� The house is the architectural expression of that point of view.
Country Life (2004)The strong wind did play its role but not enough to excuse St Patrick's solitary point in the second half.
Irish Times (2002)Other local residents felt there was no point in opposing the big boys.
Glasgow Herald (2001)That conversation with his mother was the turning point for Bill.
, BEYOND FEAR (2002)