|
wordswarm: free dictionary lookup |
look up a word or phrase |
|
|
My Projects:
Payphone Project .
USPS Mailbox Locator .
Found Photos .
"The Etude" Magazine .
Discarded Umbrella Carcasses .
My Receipts Telephone Exchange Names . My Film Photography . Sepulchral Portraits . WanderLIC . Old Receipts . Sorabji.ME . Sorabji.com | ||
|---|---|---|
Wordswarms From Years PastAdjacent WordsUsagerUsama bin Laden Usance Usant USB Usbeg Usbegs Usbek Usbeks USCB USCG USDA USDAW use diligence use immunity use of force policy use of goods and services use up useable useableness Used used to used up used-car used-car lot Useful Full-text Search for "Use" 6607 |
Use definitions
Webster's 1828 DictionaryUSE, n. [L. urus.] WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)n Merriam Webster's
Oxford Reference Dictionaryv. & n. --v.tr. 1 cause to act or serve for a purpose; bring into service; avail oneself of (rarely uses the car; use your discretion). 2 treat (a person) in a specified manner (they used him shamefully). 3 exploit for one's own ends (they are just using you). 4 (in past; foll. by to + infin.) did or had in the past (but no longer) as a customary practice or state (I used to be an archaeologist; it used not (or did not use) to rain so often). 5 (as used adj.) second-hand. 6 (as used predic. adj.) (foll. by to) familiar by habit; accustomed (not used to hard work). 7 apply (a name or title etc.) to oneself. --n. 1 the act of using or the state of being used; application to a purpose (put it to good use; is in daily use; worn and polished with use). 2 the right or power of using (lost the use of my right arm). 3 a the ability to be used (a torch would be of use). b the purpose for which a thing can be used (it's no use talking). 4 custom or usage (long use has reconciled me to it). 5 the characteristic ritual and liturgy of a church or diocese etc. 6 Law hist. the benefit or profit of lands, esp. in the possession of another who holds them solely for the beneficiary. Phrases and idioms: could use colloq. would be glad to have; would be improved by having. have no use for 1 be unable to find a use for. 2 dislike or be impatient with. make use of 1 employ, apply. 2 benefit from. use and wont established custom. use a person's name quote a person as an authority or reference etc. use up 1 consume completely, use the whole of. 2 find a use for (something remaining). 3 exhaust or wear out e.g. with overwork. Etymology: ME f. OF us, user, ult. f. L uti us- use Webster's 1913 DictionaryUse Use, n. [OE. us use, usage, L. usus, from uti, p. p. usus, to use. See Use, v. t.] 1. The act of employing anything, or of applying it to one's service; the state of being so employed or applied; application; employment; conversion to some purpose; as, the use of a pen in writing; his machines are in general use. Books can never teach the use of books. --Bacon. This Davy serves you for good uses. --Shak. When he framed All things to man's delightful use. --Milton. 2. Occasion or need to employ; necessity; as, to have no further use for a book. --Shak. 3. Yielding of service; advantage derived; capability of being used; usefulness; utility. God made two great lights, great for their use To man. --Milton. 'T is use alone that sanctifies expense. --Pope. 4. Continued or repeated practice; customary employment; usage; custom; manner; habit. Let later age that noble use envy. --Spenser. How weary, stale, flat and unprofitable, Seem to me all the uses of this world! --Shak. 5. Common occurrence; ordinary experience. [R.] O C[ae]sar! these things are beyond all use. --Shak. 6. (Eccl.) The special form of ritual adopted for use in any diocese; as, the Sarum, or Canterbury, use; the Hereford use; the York use; the Roman use; etc. From henceforth all the whole realm shall have but one use. --Pref. to Book of Common Prayer. 7. The premium paid for the possession and employment of borrowed money; interest; usury. [Obs.] Thou art more obliged to pay duty and tribute, use and principal, to him. --Jer. Taylor. 8. [In this sense probably a corruption of OF. oes, fr. L. opus need, business, employment, work. Cf. Operate.] (Law) The benefit or profit of lands and tenements. Use imports a trust and confidence reposed in a man for the holding of lands. He to whose use or benefit the trust is intended shall enjoy the profits. An estate is granted and limited to A for the use of B. 9. (Forging) A stab of iron welded to the side of a forging, as a shaft, near the end, and afterward drawn down, by hammering, so as to lengthen the forging. Contingent, or Springing, use (Law), a use to come into operation on a future uncertain event. In use. (a) In employment; in customary practice observance. (b) In heat; -- said especially of mares. --J. H. Walsh. Of no use, useless; of no advantage. Of use, useful; of advantage; profitable. Out of use, not in employment. Resulting use (Law), a use, which, being limited by the deed, expires or can not vest, and results or returns to him who raised it, after such expiration. Secondary, or Shifting, use, a use which, though executed, may change from one to another by circumstances. --Blackstone. Statute of uses (Eng. Law), the stat. 27 Henry VIII., cap. 10, which transfers uses into possession, or which unites the use and possession. To make use of, To put to use, to employ; to derive service from; to use. Webster's 1913 DictionaryUse Use, n. [OE. us use, usage, L. usus, from uti, p. p. usus, to use. See Use, v. t.] 1. The act of employing anything, or of applying it to one's service; the state of being so employed or applied; application; employment; conversion to some purpose; as, the use of a pen in writing; his machines are in general use. Books can never teach the use of books. --Bacon. This Davy serves you for good uses. --Shak. When he framed All things to man's delightful use. --Milton. 2. Occasion or need to employ; necessity; as, to have no further use for a book. --Shak. 3. Yielding of service; advantage derived; capability of being used; usefulness; utility. God made two great lights, great for their use To man. --Milton. 'T is use alone that sanctifies expense. --Pope. 4. Continued or repeated practice; customary employment; usage; custom; manner; habit. Let later age that noble use envy. --Spenser. How weary, stale, flat and unprofitable, Seem to me all the uses of this world! --Shak. 5. Common occurrence; ordinary experience. [R.] O C[ae]sar! these things are beyond all use. --Shak. 6. (Eccl.) The special form of ritual adopted for use in any diocese; as, the Sarum, or Canterbury, use; the Hereford use; the York use; the Roman use; etc. From henceforth all the whole realm shall have but one use. --Pref. to Book of Common Prayer. 7. The premium paid for the possession and employment of borrowed money; interest; usury. [Obs.] Thou art more obliged to pay duty and tribute, use and principal, to him. --Jer. Taylor. 8. [In this sense probably a corruption of OF. oes, fr. L. opus need, business, employment, work. Cf. Operate.] (Law) The benefit or profit of lands and tenements. Use imports a trust and confidence reposed in a man for the holding of lands. He to whose use or benefit the trust is intended shall enjoy the profits. An estate is granted and limited to A for the use of B. 9. (Forging) A stab of iron welded to the side of a forging, as a shaft, near the end, and afterward drawn down, by hammering, so as to lengthen the forging. Contingent, or Springing, use (Law), a use to come into operation on a future uncertain event. In use. (a) In employment; in customary practice observance. (b) In heat; -- said especially of mares. --J. H. Walsh. Of no use, useless; of no advantage. Of use, useful; of advantage; profitable. Out of use, not in employment. Resulting use (Law), a use, which, being limited by the deed, expires or can not vest, and results or returns to him who raised it, after such expiration. Secondary, or Shifting, use, a use which, though executed, may change from one to another by circumstances. --Blackstone. Statute of uses (Eng. Law), the stat. 27 Henry VIII., cap. 10, which transfers uses into possession, or which unites the use and possession. To make use of, To put to use, to employ; to derive service from; to use. Webster's 1913 DictionaryUse Use, n. [OE. us use, usage, L. usus, from uti, p. p. usus, to use. See Use, v. t.] 1. The act of employing anything, or of applying it to one's service; the state of being so employed or applied; application; employment; conversion to some purpose; as, the use of a pen in writing; his machines are in general use. Books can never teach the use of books. --Bacon. This Davy serves you for good uses. --Shak. When he framed All things to man's delightful use. --Milton. 2. Occasion or need to employ; necessity; as, to have no further use for a book. --Shak. 3. Yielding of service; advantage derived; capability of being used; usefulness; utility. God made two great lights, great for their use To man. --Milton. 'T is use alone that sanctifies expense. --Pope. 4. Continued or repeated practice; customary employment; usage; custom; manner; habit. Let later age that noble use envy. --Spenser. How weary, stale, flat and unprofitable, Seem to me all the uses of this world! --Shak. 5. Common occurrence; ordinary experience. [R.] O C[ae]sar! these things are beyond all use. --Shak. 6. (Eccl.) The special form of ritual adopted for use in any diocese; as, the Sarum, or Canterbury, use; the Hereford use; the York use; the Roman use; etc. From henceforth all the whole realm shall have but one use. --Pref. to Book of Common Prayer. 7. The premium paid for the possession and employment of borrowed money; interest; usury. [Obs.] Thou art more obliged to pay duty and tribute, use and principal, to him. --Jer. Taylor. 8. [In this sense probably a corruption of OF. oes, fr. L. opus need, business, employment, work. Cf. Operate.] (Law) The benefit or profit of lands and tenements. Use imports a trust and confidence reposed in a man for the holding of lands. He to whose use or benefit the trust is intended shall enjoy the profits. An estate is granted and limited to A for the use of B. 9. (Forging) A stab of iron welded to the side of a forging, as a shaft, near the end, and afterward drawn down, by hammering, so as to lengthen the forging. Contingent, or Springing, use (Law), a use to come into operation on a future uncertain event. In use. (a) In employment; in customary practice observance. (b) In heat; -- said especially of mares. --J. H. Walsh. Of no use, useless; of no advantage. Of use, useful; of advantage; profitable. Out of use, not in employment. Resulting use (Law), a use, which, being limited by the deed, expires or can not vest, and results or returns to him who raised it, after such expiration. Secondary, or Shifting, use, a use which, though executed, may change from one to another by circumstances. --Blackstone. Statute of uses (Eng. Law), the stat. 27 Henry VIII., cap. 10, which transfers uses into possession, or which unites the use and possession. To make use of, To put to use, to employ; to derive service from; to use. Webster's 1913 DictionaryUse Use, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Used; p. pr. & vb. n. Using.] [OE. usen, F. user to use, use up, wear out, LL. usare to use, from L. uti, p. p. usus, to use, OL. oeti, oesus; of uncertain origin. Cf. Utility.] 1. To make use of; to convert to one's service; to avail one's self of; to employ; to put a purpose; as, to use a plow; to use a chair; to use time; to use flour for food; to use water for irrigation. Launcelot Gobbo, use your legs. --Shak. Some other means I have which may be used. --Milton. 2. To behave toward; to act with regard to; to treat; as, to use a beast cruelly. ``I will use him well.'' --Shak. How wouldst thou use me now? --Milton. Cato has used me ill. --Addison. 3. To practice customarily; to make a practice of; as, to use diligence in business. Use hospitality one to another. --1 Pet. iv. 9. 4. To accustom; to habituate; to render familiar by practice; to inure; -- employed chiefly in the passive participle; as, men used to cold and hunger; soldiers used to hardships and danger. I am so used in the fire to blow. --Chaucer. Thou with thy compeers, Used to the yoke, draw'st his triumphant wheels. --Milton. To use one's self, to behave. [Obs.] ``Pray, forgive me, if I have used myself unmannerly.'' --Shak. To use up. (a) To consume or exhaust by using; to leave nothing of; as, to use up the supplies. (b) To exhaust; to tire out; to leave no capacity of force or use in; to overthrow; as, he was used up by fatigue. [Colloq.] Syn: Employ. Usage: Use, Employ. We use a thing, or make use of it, when we derive from it some enjoyment or service. We employ it when we turn that service into a particular channel. We use words to express our general meaning; we employ certain technical terms in reference to a given subject. To make use of, implies passivity in the thing; as, to make use of a pen; and hence there is often a material difference between the two words when applied to persons. To speak of ``making use of another'' generally implies a degrading idea, as if we had used him as a tool; while employ has no such sense. A confidential friend is employed to negotiate; an inferior agent is made use of on an intrigue. I would, my son, that thou wouldst use the power Which thy discretion gives thee, to control And manage all. --Cowper. To study nature will thy time employ: Knowledge and innocence are perfect joy. --Dryden. Webster's 1913 DictionaryUse Use, v. i. 1. To be wont or accustomed; to be in the habit or practice; as, he used to ride daily; -- now disused in the present tense, perhaps because of the similarity in sound, between ``use to,'' and ``used to.'' They use to place him that shall be their captain on a stone. --Spenser. Fears use to be represented in an imaginary. --Bacon. Thus we use to say, it is the room that smokes, when indeed it is the fire in the room. --South. Now Moses used to take the tent and to pitch it without the camp. --Ex. xxxiii. 7 (Rev. Ver.) 2. To be accustomed to go; to frequent; to inhabit; to dwell; -- sometimes followed by of. [Obs.] ``Where never foot did use.'' --Spenser. He useth every day to a merchant's house. --B. Jonson. Ye valleys low, where the mild whispers use Of shades, and wanton winds, and gushing brooks. --Milton. Collin's Cobuild DictionaryI. VERB USES (uses, using, used) Frequency: The word is one of the 700 most common words in English. 1. If you use something, you do something with it in order to do a job or to achieve a particular result or effect. Trim off the excess pastry using a sharp knife... He had simply used a little imagination... Officials used loud hailers to call for calm... The show uses Zondo's trial and execution as its framework. VERB: V n, V n, V n to-inf, V n prep 2. If you use a supply of something, you finish it so that none of it is left. You used all the ice cubes and didn't put the ice trays back... They've never had anything spare–they've always used it all. VERB: V n, V n • Use up means the same as use. It isn't them who use up the world's resources... We were breathing really fast, and using the air up quickly. PHRASAL VERB: V P n (not pron), V n P 3. If someone uses drugs, they take drugs regularly, especially illegal ones. He denied he had used drugs... = take, do VERB: V n 4. You can say that someone uses the toilet or bathroom as a polite way of saying that they go to the toilet. Wash your hands after using the toilet... He asked whether he could use my bathroom. VERB: V n, V n [politeness] 5. If you use a particular word or expression, you say or write it, because it has the meaning that you want to express. The judge liked using the word 'wicked' of people he had sent to jail... VERB: V n 6. If you use a particular name, you call yourself by that name, especially when it is not the name that you usually call yourself. Now I use a false name if I'm meeting people for the first time... VERB: V n 7. If you say that someone uses people, you disapprove of them because they make others do things for them in order to benefit or gain some advantage from it, and not because they care about the other people. Be careful she's not just using you... Why do I have the feeling I'm being used again? = exploit VERB: V n, V n [disapproval] 8. see also used II. NOUN USES (uses) Frequency: The word is one of the 1500 most common words in English. 1. Your use of something is the action or fact of your using it. The treatment does not involve the use of any artificial drugs. ...research related to microcomputers and their use in classrooms... We are denied use of the land by the ruling classes... He would support a use of force if the UN deemed it necessary. N-UNCOUNT: also a N, usu N of n 2. If you have a use for something, you need it or can find something to do with it. You will no longer have a use for the magazines... They both loved the fabric, but couldn't find a use for it. N-SING: a N for n 3. If something has a particular use, it is intended for a particular purpose. Infrared detectors have many uses... It's an interesting scientific phenomenon, but of no practical use whatever... French furniture was designed for every use... The report outlined possible uses for the new weapon. ...Elderflower Water for use as an eye and skin lotion... We need to recognize that certain uses of the land upon which we live are simply wrong. N-VAR: with supp, oft adj N, N of/for n, N as/in n 4. If you have the use of something, you have the permission or ability to use it. She will have the use of the car one night a week. ...young people who at some point in the past have lost the use of their limbs... You will have full use of all the new leisure club facilities. N-UNCOUNT: also the N, usu N of n 5. A use of a word is a particular meaning that it has or a particular way in which it can be used. There are new uses of words coming in and old uses dying out. N-COUNT: with supp, oft N of n 6. Your use of a particular name is the fact of your calling yourself by it. Police have been hampered by Mr Urquhart's use of bogus names. N-UNCOUNT: N of n 7. If something is for the use of a particular person or group of people, it is for that person or group to use. The leisure facilities are there for the use of guests... He raises crops mainly for the use of his family. PHRASE: PHR n 8. If you say that being something or knowing someone has its uses, you mean that it makes it possible for you to do what you otherwise would not be able to do. (INFORMAL) Being a hospital Sister had its uses. PHRASE: V inflects 9. If something such as a technique, building, or machine is in use, it is used regularly by people. If it has gone out of use, it is no longer used regularly by people. ...the methods of making Champagne which are still in use today... The site has been out of use for many years. PHRASE: usu v-link PHR 10. If you make use of something, you do something with it in order to do a job or achieve a particular result or effect. (WRITTEN) Not all nursery schools make use of the opportunities open to them. ...making use of the same bottle time after time. PHRASE: V inflects, PHR n 11. You use expressions such as it's no use, there's no use, and what's the use to indicate that a particular action will not achieve anything. It's no use arguing with a drunk... There's no use you asking me any more questions... What's the use of complaining? PHRASE: V inflects, usu PHR -ing 12. If you say it's no use, you mean that you have failed to do something and realize that it is useless to continue trying because it is impossible. It's no use. Let's hang up and try for a better line. PHRASE: V inflects 13. If something or someone is of use, they are useful. If they are no use, they are not at all useful. The contents of this booklet should be of use to all students... I'm sorry, I've been no use to you. PHRASE: usu v-link PHR, oft PHR to n Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms
Airports
Moby Thesaurusablation, absolute interest, abuse, account, act toward, adaptability, advantage, appliance, applicability, application, apply, appropriateness, automatism, avail, availability, bad habit, behalf, behave toward, behoof, benefit, bestow, bleed, bleed white, bon ton, bring into play, care for, carry on, ceremony, characteristic, claim, common, conduct, conformity, consuetude, contend with, contingent interest, control, convenience, convention, cope with, creature of habit, custom, deal by, deal with, demand, do, do by, do with, drain, duty, easement, effectiveness, efficacy, efficiency, employ, employment, end use, engage in, equitable interest, equity, erosion, established way, estate, etiquette, exercise, exercising, exert, exertion, exploit, fall back, familiarize, fashion, fitness, folkway, follow, force of habit, formality, function, functionality, go in for, goal, govern, habit, habit pattern, habituate, habitude, handle, helpfulness, holding, ill-use, immediate purpose, impose, impose upon, interest, inure, limitation, make use of, manage, manipulate, manner, manners, mark, milk, misuse, mores, object, objective, observance, occasion, office, operability, operate, operation, operational purpose, parley, part, pattern, peculiarity, percentage, play, play on, ply, point, practicability, practical utility, practicality, practice, praxis, prescription, presume upon, profit, profitability, proper thing, prosecute, purpose, pursue, put forth, put out, put to use, ravages of time, regulate, relevance, respond to, right, right of entry, ritual, role, run, second nature, serve, service, serviceability, settlement, social convention, specialize in, stake, standard behavior, standard usage, standing custom, stereotype, stereotyped behavior, steward, strict settlement, stroke, suck dry, tackle, take, take advantage of, take on, take to, take up, talk, target, time-honored practice, title, tradition, treat, trick, trust, ultimate purpose, undertake, usability, usage, use ill, usefulness, utility, utilizability, utilize, value, vested interest, wage, way, wear, wear and tear, weathering, what is done, wield, wont, wonting, work, work at, work on, work upon, worth |