direct

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

English

Alternative forms

• darect (India)

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin dīrectus, perfect passive participle of dīrigō (“straighten, direct”), from dis- (“asunder, in pieces, apart, in two”) + regō (“make straight, rule”). Compare dress. Doublet of derecho.

For the meaning development compare with Russian напра́вить (naprávitʹ, “to direct, to turn, to aim, to level, to point”), отпра́вить (otprávitʹ, “to send, to dispatch, to forward”) connected with пра́вить (právitʹ, “to govern, to rule, to drive, to steer”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /d(a)ɪˈɹɛkt/, /dəˈɹɛkt/, /daɪ̯əˈɹɛkt/
• Hyphenation: di‧rect
• Rhymes: -ɛkt

Adjective

direct (comparative more direct, superlative most direct)

1. Proceeding without deviation or interruption.
2. Straight; not crooked, oblique, or circuitous; leading by the short or shortest way to a point or end.

3. Straightforward; sincere.
4. Immediate; express; plain; unambiguous.
5. In the line of descent; not collateral.

6. (astronomy) In the direction of the general planetary motion, or from west to east; in the order of the signs; not retrograde; said of the motion of a celestial body.
7. (political science) Pertaining to, or effected immediately by, action of the people through their votes instead of through one or more representatives or delegates.

8. (aviation, travel) Having a single flight number.
9. (mathematics, logic, of a proof) Not employing the law of the excluded middle or argument by contradiction. Antonym: indirect

Synonyms

• (proceeding uninterrupted): immediate
• (express, plain, unambiguous): explicit, patent, univocal; see also Thesaurus:explicit

Antonyms

• indirect

Derived terms

Translations

Adverb

direct (comparative more direct, superlative most direct)

1. Directly.

Verb

direct (third-person singular simple present directs, present participle directing, simple past and past participle directed)

1. To manage, control, steer.
2. To aim (something) at (something else).

3. To point out to or show (somebody) the right course or way; to guide, as by pointing out the way.
4. To point out to with authority; to instruct as a superior; to order.
5. (dated) To address (a letter) to a particular person or place.

Derived terms

Related terms

Translations

Anagrams

• Credit, credit, triced

Dutch

Etymology

Borrowed from Middle French direct, from Latin dīrēctus.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /diˈrɛkt/
• Hyphenation: di‧rect
• Rhymes: -ɛkt

Adjective

direct (comparative directer, superlative directst)

1. direct, immediate

   Antonym: indirect

2. direct, blunt, frank

Declension

Adverb

direct

1. immediately

Synonyms

Derived terms

Descendants

• Afrikaans: direk
• Javindo: direk, drek
• → Papiamentu: dirèkt
• → Sranan Tongo: dièkdirèk
  • → Caribbean Javanese: dirèg

French

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /di.ʁɛkt/
• Homophones: directe, directes, directs

Etymology 1

Borrowed from Latin dīrectus. Doublet of droit, which was inherited.

Adjective

direct (feminine directe, masculine plural directs, feminine plural directes)

1. direct

Noun

direct m (plural directs)

1. (media) live broadcast, live reporting

   Synonym: live

Etymology 2

From directement.

Adverb

direct

1. (colloquial) directly

   Si t’as pas envie d’y aller, dis-le direct. ― If you don't want to go, say it straight up.

Derived terms

Related terms

• diriger
• directeur
• direction

See also

• droit

Further reading

• “direct”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

Anagrams

• crédit
• décrit
• dicter

German

Adjective

direct (strong nominative masculine singular directer, comparative directer, superlative am directesten)

1. Obsolete spelling of direkt which was deprecated in 1902 following the Second Orthographic Conference of 1901.

Declension

Norman

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin dīrectus, perfect passive participle of dīrigō, dīrigere (“straighten, direct”). Compare the inherited drait, drouait.

Adjective

direct m

1. (Jersey) direct

Derived terms

• directément (“directly”)

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French direct, Latin directus. Compare the inherited doublet drept.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /diˈrekt/

Adjective

direct m or n (feminine singular directă, masculine plural direcți, feminine and neuter plural directe)

1. direct
2. head-on

Declension

Adverb

direct

1. directly
2. straight