address

English Online Dictionary. What means address‎? What does address mean?

English

Etymology

From Middle English adressen (“to raise erect, adorn”), from Old French adrecier (“to straighten, address”) (modern French adresser), from a- (from Latin ad (“to”)) + drecier (modern French dresser (“to straighten, arrange”)), from Vulgar Latin *dīrectiō, from Latin dīrēctus (“straight or right”), from the verb dīrigō, itself from regō (“to govern, to rule”). Cognate with Spanish aderezar (“to garnish; dress (food); to add spices”).

Pronunciation

• Noun:
  • enPR: ə-drĕsʹ, ădʹrĕs, IPA^(key): /əˈdɹɛs/, /ˈæd.ɹɛs/
• Verb:
  • (Received Pronunciation) enPR: ə-drĕsʹ, IPA^(key): /əˈdɹɛs/
• • (General American, Canada) enPR: ə-drĕsʹ, ăd-rĕsʹ, IPA^(key): /əˈdɹɛs/, /ˈæd.ɹɛs/
• Hyphenation: ad‧dress
• Rhymes: -ɛs

Noun

address (plural addresses)

1. Direction.
   1. (obsolete) Guidance; help. [15th–17th c.]
   2. (chiefly in the plural, now archaic) A polite approach made to another person, especially of a romantic nature; an amorous advance. [from 16th c.]
   3. A manner of speaking or writing to another; language, style. [from 16th c.]

   4. A formal approach to a sovereign, especially an official appeal or petition; later (specifically) a response given by each of the Houses of Parliament to the sovereign's speech at the opening of Parliament. [from 17th c.]
   6. An act of addressing oneself to a person or group; a discourse or speech, or a record of this. [from 17th c.]
   8. A description of the location of a property, usually with at least a street name and number, name of a town, and now also a postal code; such a description as superscribed for direction on an envelope or letter. [from 17th c.]

   9. (by extension) The property itself. [from 19th c.]

   10. (computing) A number identifying a specific storage location in computer memory; a string of characters identifying a location on the internet or other network; sometimes (specifically) an e-mail address. [from 20th c.]

2. Preparation.
   1. (now rare) Preparedness for some task; resourcefulness; skill, ability. [from 16th c.]
   2. (obsolete) The act of getting ready; preparation. [17th–18th c.]
   3. (golf, Scotland) The act of bringing the head of the club up to the ball in preparation for swinging. [from 19th c.]

Derived terms

Descendants

• Tok Pisin: adres
• → Bole: adireshi
• → Cebuano: adres
• → Sinhalese: ඇඩ්‍රස් (æḍras)
• → Tagalog: adres

Translations

Verb

address (third-person singular simple present addresses, present participle addressing, simple past and past participle addressed or (obsolete) addrest)

1. (intransitive, obsolete) To prepare oneself.
2. (intransitive, obsolete) To direct speech.
3. (transitive, obsolete) To aim; to direct.
4. (transitive, obsolete) To prepare or make ready.
5. (transitive, reflexive) To prepare oneself; to apply one's skill or energies (to some object); to betake.
6. (reflexive) To direct one’s remarks (to someone).
   • 1701, Thomas Brown, Laconics, or New Maxims of State and Conversation, London: Thomas Hodgson, section 76, p. 103,^[1]

     In the Reign of King Charles the Second, a certain Worthy Divine at Whitehall, thus Address’d himself to the Auditory at the conclusion of his Sermon.
7. (transitive, archaic) To clothe or array; to dress.

   Synonyms: beclothe, dight, put on; see also Thesaurus:clothe
8. (Discuss⁽⁺⁾ this sense) (transitive) To direct, as words (to anyone or anything); to make, as a speech, petition, etc. (to any audience).

9. (transitive) To direct speech to; to make a communication to, whether spoken or written; to apply to by words, as by a speech, petition, etc., to speak to.
10. (transitive) To direct in writing, as a letter; to superscribe, or to direct and transmit.

11. (transitive) To make suit to as a lover; to court; to woo.

    Synonyms: romance, put the moves on; see also Thesaurus:woo

12. (transitive) To consign or entrust to the care of another, as agent or factor.

13. (transitive) To address oneself to; to prepare oneself for; to apply oneself to; to direct one's speech, discourse or efforts to.
14. (transitive, formal) To direct attention towards a problem or obstacle, in an attempt to resolve it.
15. (transitive, computing) To refer to a location in computer memory.
16. (transitive, golf, Scotland) To get ready to hit (the ball on the tee).

Usage notes

• The intransitive uses can be understood as omission of the reflexive pronoun.

Derived terms

Translations

References

Scots

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈadrɛs/

Noun

address (plural addresses)

1. an address

Verb

address (third-person singular simple present addresses, present participle addressin, simple past addressed, past participle addressed)

1. to address

References

• Eagle, Andy, ed. (2016) The Online Scots Dictionary, Scots Online.