Adjacent Words

optical definitions

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WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

adj
1: of or relating to or involving light or optics; "optical supplies"
2: relating to or using sight; "ocular inspection"; "an optical illusion"; "visual powers"; "visual navigation" [syn: ocular, optic, optical, visual]
3: of or relating to or resembling the eye; "ocular muscles"; "an ocular organ"; "ocular diseases"; "the optic (or optical) axis of the eye"; "an ocular spot is a pigmented organ or part believed to be sensitive to light" [syn: ocular, optic, optical, opthalmic]

Merriam Webster's

adjective Date: 1570 1. of or relating to the science of optics 2. a. of or relating to vision ; visual b. visible 1 <optical wavelength> c. of, relating to, or being objects that emit light in the visible range of frequencies <an optical galaxy> d. using the properties of light to aid vision <an optical instrument> 3. a. of, relating to, or utilizing light especially instead of other forms of energy <optical microscopy> b. involving the use of light-sensitive devices to acquire information for a computer <optical character recognition> 4. of or relating to optical art • optically adverb

Oxford Reference Dictionary

adj. 1 of sight; visual. 2 a of or concerning sight or light in relation to each other. b belonging to optics. 3 (esp. of a lens) constructed to assist sight or on the principles of optics. Phrases and idioms: optical activity Chem. the property of rotating the plane of polarization of plane-polarized light. optical art a style of painting that gives the illusion of movement by the precise use of pattern and colour. optical brightener any fluorescent substance used to produce a whitening effect on laundry. optical character recognition the identification of printed characters using photoelectric devices. optical disc see DISC. optical fibre thin glass fibre through which light can be transmitted. optical glass a very pure kind of glass used for lenses etc. optical illusion 1 a thing having an appearance so resembling something else as to deceive the eye. 2 an instance of mental misapprehension caused by this. optical microscope a microscope using the direct perception of light (cf. electron microscope). Derivatives: optically adv.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Optic Op"tic, Optical Op"tic*al, a. [F. optique, Gr. ?; akin to ? sight, ? I have seen, ? I shall see, and to ? the two eyes, ? face, L. oculus eye. See Ocular, Eye, and cf. Canopy, Ophthalmia.] 1. Of or pertaining to vision or sight. The moon, whose orb Through optic glass the Tuscan artist views. --Milton. 2. Of or pertaining to the eye; ocular; as, the optic nerves (the first pair of cranial nerves) which are distributed to the retina. See Illust. of Brain, and Eye. 3. Relating to the science of optics; as, optical works. Optic angle (Opt.), the angle included between the optic axes of the two eyes when directed to the same point; -- sometimes called binocular parallax. Optic axis. (Opt.) (a) A line drawn through the center of the eye perpendicular to its anterior and posterior surfaces. In a normal eye it is in the direction of the optic axis that objects are most distinctly seen. (b) The line in a doubly refracting crystal, in the direction of which no double refraction occurs. A uniaxial crystal has one such line, a biaxial crystal has two. Optical circle (Opt.), a graduated circle used for the measurement of angles in optical experiments. Optical square, a surveyor's instrument with reflectors for laying off right angles.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

Optical devices, processes, and effects involve or relate to vision, light, or images. ...optical telescopes. ...the optical effects of volcanic dust in the stratosphere. ADJ: usu ADJ n

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

a. See optic