element
English edit
Etymology edit
From Middle English element, from Old French element, from Latin elementum (“a first principle, element, rudiment”) (see further etymology there).
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
element (plural elements)
- One of the simplest or essential parts or principles of which anything consists, or upon which the constitution or fundamental powers of anything are based.
- Letters are the elements of written language.
- 1881, Benjamin Jowett, Thucydides:
- The simplicity which is so large an element in a noble nature was laughed to scorn.
- (chemistry) Any one of the simplest chemical substances that cannot be decomposed in a chemical reaction or by any chemical means and made up of atoms all having the same number of protons.
- Synonyms: chemical element, (rare, nonstandard) firststuff
- One of the four basic building blocks of matter in theories of ancient philosophers and alchemists: water, earth, fire, and air.
- (usually in the plural) A basic, simple substance out of which something is made, raw material.
- c. 1587–1588, [Christopher Marlowe], Tamburlaine the Great. […] The First Part […], 2nd edition, part 1, London: […] [R. Robinson for] Richard Iones, […], published 1592, →OCLC; reprinted as Tamburlaine the Great (A Scolar Press Facsimile), Menston, Yorkshire, London: Scolar Press, 1973, →ISBN, Act I, scene ii:
- Thus ſhall my heart be ſtil combinde with thine,
Untill our bodies turne to Elements:
And both our ſoules aſpire celeſtiall thrones.
- (law) A required aspect or component of a cause of action. A deed is regarded as a violation of law only if each element can be proved.
- (set theory) One of the objects in a set.
- Synonym: member
- (mathematics) One of the entries of a matrix.
- Any of the teeth of a zip fastener.
- A small part of the whole.
- an element of the picture
- A small but present amount of a quality, a hint.
- an element of doubt
- 1927, F. E. Penny, chapter 4, in Pulling the Strings:
- The case was that of a murder. It had an element of mystery about it, however, which was puzzling the authorities. A turban and loincloth soaked in blood had been found; also a staff.
- A factor, one of the conditions contributing to a result.
- (obsolete) The sky.
- 1748, [Samuel Richardson], “Letter LXIX”, in Clarissa. Or, The History of a Young Lady: […], volumes (please specify |volume=I to VII), London: […] S[amuel] Richardson; […], →OCLC:
- Sometimes, solitude is of all things my wish; and the awful silence of the night, the spangled element, and the rising and setting sun, how promotive of contemplation!
- (obsolete) Any one of the heavenly spheres believed to carry the celestial bodies.
- (in the plural only, with "the") Atmospheric forces such as strong winds and rains.
- exposed to the elements
- A place or state of being that an individual or object is best suited to.
- to be in one's element
- (Christianity, usually in the plural) The bread and wine taken at Holy Communion.
- A group of people within a larger group having a particular common characteristic.
- You sometimes find the hooligan element at football matches.
- (in the plural only) The basic principles of a field of knowledge, basics, fundamentals, rudiments.
- A component in electrical equipment, often in the form of a coil, having a high resistance, thereby generating heat when a current is passed through it.
- The element in this electric kettle can heat the water in under a minute.
- (mathematics) An infinitesimal interval of a quantity, a differential.
- The element of area in Cartesian coordinates is dx dy.
- (astronomy) An orbital element; one of the parameters needed to uniquely specify a particular orbit.
- (computing) One of the conceptual objects in a markup language, usually represented in text by tags.
- 2011, Richard Wagner, Creating Web Pages All-in-One For Dummies:
- The div element was introduced into HTML as a solution to the layout problem.
Hyponyms edit
Derived terms edit
- alloying element
- block level element
- diagonal element
- driven element
- element number
- element of surprise
- element zero
- endogenous viral element
- finite element
- generalized element
- generic element
- global element
- identity element
- in one's element
- integral element
- logical mechanical element
- lumped-element model
- main group element
- major element
- microelement
- mobile genetic element
- native element
- out of one's element
- parasitic element
- primitive element
- rare-earth element
- rare earth element
- regular element
- representative element
- sentence element
- sieve-tube element
- single-element
- sub-element
- systematic element name
- time element
- tipping element
- trace element
- transition element
- transuranium element
- vessel element
Related terms edit
Translations edit
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- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
See also edit
Verb edit
element (third-person singular simple present elements, present participle elementing, simple past and past participle elemented)
- (obsolete) To compound of elements.
- 1633, John Donne, A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning:
- those things which elemented [love]
- 1661, Robert Boyle, The Sceptical Chymist:
- elemented bodies
- 1681, Maunyngham, Disc., page 89:
- thou art elemented and organed
- (obsolete) To constitute and be the elements of.
- 1658, Izaak Walton, Life of Donne:
- His very soul was elemented of nothing but sadness.
Related terms edit
References edit
- Lehmann, R.G. (2011). "27-30-22-26 - How many letters needs an alphabet?". In de Voogt, A.; Quack, J.F. The Idea of Writing: Writing Across Borders. Brill. pp. 15–16, note 8.
Further reading edit
- “element”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
- “element”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
Anagrams edit
Catalan edit
Etymology edit
Borrowed from Latin elementum.
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
element m (plural elements)
- element, a component part of a thing
- (plural) fundamental principles or simpler notions of a knowledge system
- (plural) set of natural forces (the weather, the sea, etc)
- (chemistry) element, a simple substance that cannot be broken down into others by chemical methods
- (biology) the environment in which a being lives
- (math) element, an object that belongs to a set
- (pejorative) a person, an individual
Derived terms edit
Further reading edit
- “element” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
- “element”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2024
- “element” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
- “element” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.
Crimean Tatar edit
Etymology edit
Noun edit
element
- element.
Declension edit
nominative | element |
---|---|
genitive | elementniñ |
dative | elementke |
accusative | elementni |
locative | elementte |
ablative | elementten |
References edit
Czech edit
Etymology edit
Inherited from Old Czech element, from Latin elementum.
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
element m inan
- element (one of the simplest or essential parts or principles of which anything consists, or upon which the constitution or fundamental powers of anything are based)
- element (one of the four basic building blocks of matter in theories of ancient philosophers and alchemists: water, earth, fire, and air)
- elementary (basic knowledge or fact)
- (literary) element (small part of the whole)
- (physics) galvanic cell
Declension edit
Further reading edit
Danish edit
Noun edit
element n (singular definite elementet, plural indefinite elementer)
Declension edit
neuter gender |
Singular | Plural | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
indefinite | definite | indefinite | definite | |
nominative | element | elementet | elementer | elementerne |
genitive | elements | elementets | elementers | elementernes |
References edit
- “element” in Den Danske Ordbog
Dutch edit
Etymology edit
From Middle Dutch element, from Old French element, from Latin elementum (“a first principle, element, rudiment”), of uncertain origin (see further etymology there).
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
element n (plural elementen, diminutive elementje n)
Derived terms edit
Descendants edit
- → Indonesian: elemen
Anagrams edit
Kashubian edit
Etymology edit
Learned borrowing from Latin elementum.
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
element m inan
- element (small part of the whole)
Further reading edit
Norwegian Bokmål edit
Etymology edit
Noun edit
element n (definite singular elementet, indefinite plural element or elementer, definite plural elementa or elementene)
- an element
References edit
- “element” in The Bokmål Dictionary.
Norwegian Nynorsk edit
Etymology edit
Noun edit
element n (definite singular elementet, indefinite plural element, definite plural elementa)
- an element
References edit
- “element” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.
Old Czech edit
Alternative forms edit
Etymology edit
Learned borrowing from Latin elementum.[1]
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
element m inan
- element (one of the four basic building blocks of matter in theories of ancient philosophers and alchemists: water, earth, fire, and air)
Declension edit
singular | dual | plural | |
---|---|---|---|
nominative | element | elementy | elementi, elementové |
genitive | elementa, elementu | elementú | elementóv |
dative | elementu | elementoma | elementóm |
accusative | element | elementy | elementy |
vocative | elemente | elementy | elementi, elementové |
locative | elementě, elementu | elementú | elementiech |
instrumental | elementem | elementoma | elementy |
See also Appendix:Old Czech nouns and Appendix:Old Czech pronunciation.
Descendants edit
- Czech: element
References edit
- ^ Rejzek, Jiří (2015), “element”, in Český etymologický slovník [Czech Etymological Dictionary] (in Czech), 3rd (revised and expanded) edition, Praha: LEDA, →ISBN
- Jan Gebauer (1903–1916), “element”, in Slovník staročeský (in Czech), Prague: Česká grafická společnost "unie", Česká akademie císaře Františka Josefa pro vědy, slovesnost a umění
Old Polish edit
Alternative forms edit
Etymology edit
Learned borrowing from Latin elementum.[1][2][3][4][5] First attested in the middle of the 15th century.
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
element m ?
- element (one of the four basic building blocks of matter in theories of ancient philosophers and alchemists: water, earth, fire, and air)
- Middle of the 15th century, Rozmyślanie o żywocie Pana Jezusa[2], page 5:
- Czthyrzy zyvyoly... albo alymenta szą od czyebye stvorzony (elementa quatuor a te sunt creata), ymysz ma bycz zyvo wschystko stvorzenye. To sa ta czvsch ozm ozm alymenta: ogyen, zyemya, vylkoscz y povyetrze
- [Cztyrzy żywioły... albo alimenta są od Ciebie stworzony (elementa quatuor a Te sunt creata), imiż ma być żywo wszystko stworzenie, to są, toczusz alimenta: ogień, ziemia, wilkość i powietrze]
Descendants edit
References edit
- ^ Bańkowski, Andrzej (2000), “element”, in Etymologiczny słownik języka polskiego [Etymological Dictionary of the Polish Language] (in Polish)
- ^ Mirosław Bańko; Lidia Wiśniakowska (2021), “element”, in Wielki słownik wyrazów obcych, →ISBN
- ^ Stanisław Dubisz, editor (2003), “element”, in Uniwersalny słownik języka polskiego [Universal dictionary of the Polish language] (in Polish), volume 1-4, Warsaw: Wydawnictwo Naukowe PWN SA, →ISBN
- ^ Witold Doroszewski, editor (1958–1969), “element”, in Słownik języka polskiego (in Polish), Warszawa: PWN
- ^ Krystyna Długosz-Kurczabowa (2021) Wielki słownik etymologiczno-historyczny języka polskiego, →ISBN
- B. Sieradzka-Baziur, editor (2011–2015), “element”, in Słownik pojęciowy języka staropolskiego [Conceptual Dictionary of Old Polish] (in Polish), Kraków: IJP PAN, →ISBN
Old Slovak edit
Alternative forms edit
Etymology edit
Learned borrowing from Latin elementum.[1]
Noun edit
element m inan
- element (basic substance)
- element (one of the four basic building blocks of matter in theories of ancient philosophers and alchemists: water, earth, fire, and air)
Descendants edit
- Slovak: element
References edit
- Majtán, Milan et al., editors (1991–2008), “element”, in Historický slovník slovenského jazyka [Historical Dictionary of the Slovak Language] (in Slovak), volume 1–7 (A – Ž), Bratislava: VEDA, →OCLC
Polish edit
Etymology edit
Inherited from Old Polish element.
Pronunciation edit
- IPA(key): /ɛˈlɛ.mɛnt/
- (Middle Polish) IPA(key): /ɛˈlɛ.mɛnt/
Audio (file) - Rhymes: -ɛmɛnt
- Syllabification: e‧le‧ment
Noun edit
element m inan (diminutive elemencik)
- element (small part of the whole)
- member; dregs (person or group with negative traits)
- Wieczorami w knajpie zbierał się podejrzany element. ― In the evenings, a suspicious group congregated in the pub.
- element (one of the four basic building blocks of matter in theories of ancient philosophers and alchemists: water, earth, fire, and air)
- Synonym: żywioł
- (mathematics) element (infinitesimal interval of a quantity, a differential)
- (in the plural) elements (basic principles of a field of knowledge, basics, fundamentals, rudiments)
- Synonym: podstawy
- (obsolete, chemistry) element (any one of the simplest chemical substances that cannot be decomposed in a chemical reaction or by any chemical means and made up of atoms all having the same number of protons)
- Synonym: pierwiastek
- (Middle Polish) substance
- Synonym: substancja
Declension edit
singular | plural | |
---|---|---|
nominative | element | elementy |
genitive | elementu | elementów |
dative | elementowi | elementom |
accusative | element | elementy |
instrumental | elementem | elementami |
locative | elemencie | elementach |
vocative | elemencie | elementy |
Trivia edit
According to Słownik frekwencyjny polszczyzny współczesnej (1990), element is one of the most used words in Polish, appearing 49 times in scientific texts, 12 times in news, 44 times in essays, 6 times in fiction, and 0 times in plays, each out of a corpus of 100,000 words, totaling 111 times, making it the 549th most common word in a corpus of 500,000 words.[1]
References edit
Further reading edit
- element in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
- element in Polish dictionaries at PWN
- “element”, in Słownik Polszczyzny XVI Wieku [A Dictionary of 16th Century Polish], 2010-2023
- “ELEMENT”, in Elektroniczny Słownik Języka Polskiego XVII i XVIII Wieku [Electronic Dictionary of the Polish Language of the XVII and XVIII Century], 23.10.2012
- Samuel Bogumił Linde (1807–1814), “element”, in Słownik języka polskiego
- Aleksander Zdanowicz (1861), “element”, in Słownik języka polskiego, Wilno 1861
- J. Karłowicz, A. Kryński, W. Niedźwiedzki, editors (1900), “element”, in Słownik języka polskiego (in Polish), volume 1, Warsaw, page 689
- element in Narodowy Fotokorpus Języka Polskiego
Romanian edit
Etymology edit
Borrowed from French élément, from Latin elementum.
Noun edit
element n (plural elemente)
Declension edit
singular | plural | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
indefinite articulation | definite articulation | indefinite articulation | definite articulation | |
nominative/accusative | (un) element | elementul | (niște) elemente | elementele |
genitive/dative | (unui) element | elementului | (unor) elemente | elementelor |
vocative | elementule | elementelor |
Serbo-Croatian edit
Alternative forms edit
- elèmenat (Bosnian, Serbian)
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
elèment m (Cyrillic spelling елѐмент)
Declension edit
singular | plural | |
---|---|---|
nominative | elèment | elementi |
genitive | elementa | elèmenātā |
dative | elementu | elementima |
accusative | element | elemente |
vocative | elemente | elementi |
locative | elementu | elementima |
instrumental | elementom | elementima |
Slovak edit
Etymology edit
Inherited from Old Slovak element, from Latin elementum.
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
element m inan
- element (small part of the whole)
- element (one of the four basic building blocks of matter in theories of ancient philosophers and alchemists: water, earth, fire, and air)
- (chemistry) element (any one of the simplest chemical substances that cannot be decomposed in a chemical reaction or by any chemical means and made up of atoms all having the same number of protons)
- element (factor, one of the conditions contributing to a result)
- (engineering) A simple machine component occurring separately or as a whole on various devices.
Declension edit
Noun edit
element m anim
Further reading edit
- “element”, in Slovníkový portál Jazykovedného ústavu Ľ. Štúra SAV [Dictionary portal of the Ľ. Štúr Institute of Linguistics, Slovak Academy of Science] (in Slovak), https://slovnik.juls.savba.sk, 2024
Swedish edit
Pronunciation edit
Audio (file)
Noun edit
element n
- element; basic building block of matter in ancient philosophy
- element; a place or state of being that an individual or object is better suited towards
- elements; forces of weather
- element; an object in a set
- (mathematics) element of a matrix
- heating element, radiator
- (computing) element; object in markup language
Declension edit
Declension of element | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Singular | Plural | |||
Indefinite | Definite | Indefinite | Definite | |
Nominative | element | elementet | element | elementen |
Genitive | elements | elementets | elements | elementens |
Related terms edit
Turkish edit
Etymology edit
From Latin elementum. Doublet of eleman.
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
element (definite accusative elementi, plural elementler)
Declension edit
Inflection | ||
---|---|---|
Nominative | element | |
Definite accusative | elementi | |
Singular | Plural | |
Nominative | element | elementler |
Definite accusative | elementi | elementleri |
Dative | elemente | elementlere |
Locative | elementte | elementlerde |
Ablative | elementten | elementlerden |
Genitive | elementin | elementlerin |