| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000. |
| |
| object |
| |
| SYLLABICATION: | ob·ject |
| PRONUNCIATION: |   b j kt, -j kt |
| NOUN: | 1. Something perceptible by one or more of the senses, especially by vision or touch; a material thing. 2. A focus of attention, feeling, thought, or action: an object of contempt. 3. The purpose, aim, or goal of a specific action or effort: the object of the game. 4. Grammar a. A noun, pronoun, or noun phrase that receives or is affected by the action of a verb within a sentence. b. A noun or substantive governed by a preposition. 5. Philosophy Something intelligible or perceptible by the mind. 6. Computer Science A discrete item that can be selected and maneuvered, such as an onscreen graphic. In object-oriented programming, objects include data and the procedures necessary to operate on that data. | | VERB: | Inflected forms: ob·ject·ed, ob·ject·ing, ob·jects
( b-jkt) | | INTRANSITIVE VERB: | 1. To present a dissenting or opposing argument; raise an objection: objected to the testimony of the witness. 2. To be averse to or express disapproval of something: objects to modern materialism. | | TRANSITIVE VERB: | To put forward in or as a reason for opposition; offer as criticism: They objected that discipline was lacking. | | ETYMOLOGY: | Middle English, from Old French, from Medieval Latin obiectum, thing put before the mind, from neuter past participle of Latin obicere, to put before, hinder : ob-, before, toward; see ob– + iacere, to throw; see y - in Appendix I. V., from Middle English obiecten, from Old French objecter, from Latin obiect re, frequentative of obicere. | | OTHER FORMS: | ob·jector —NOUN
| | SYNONYMS: | object, protest, demur, remonstrate, expostulate These verbs mean to express opposition to something, usually by presenting arguments against it. Object implies the expression of disapproval or distaste: “Freedom of the press in Britain is freedom to print such of the proprietor's prejudices as the advertisers don't object to” (Hannen Swaffer). Protest suggests strong opposition, usually forthrightly expressed: The citizens protested against the tax hike. To demur is to raise an objection that may delay decision or action: We proposed a revote, but the president demurred. Remonstrate implies the presentation of objections, complaints, or reproof: “The people of Connecticut . . . remonstrated against the bill” (George Bancroft). To expostulate is to express objection in the form of earnest reasoning: The teacher expostulated with them on the foolhardiness of their behavior. See also synonyms at intention.
| | |
| |
| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by the Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
|
|
