direct

Contents

EnglishEdit

EtymologyEdit

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

PronunciationEdit

• IPA^(key): /dɪˈɹɛkt/, /daɪˈɹɛkt/, /dəˈɹɛkt/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛkt
• Hyphenation: di‧rect

AdjectiveEdit

direct (comparative directer, superlative directest)

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.

   the most direct route between two buildings

3. Straightforward; sincere.
   • Shakespeare

     Be even and direct with me.

4. Immediate; express; plain; unambiguous.
   • John Locke

     He nowhere, that I know, says it in direct words.

   • Hallam

     a direct and avowed interference with elections

5. In the line of descent; not collateral.

   a descendant in the direct line

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.

   direct nomination; direct legislation

8. (aviation, travel) having a single flight number.

AntonymsEdit

• indirect

Derived termsEdit

Derived terms

• direct action
• direct current
• direct flight

• direct initiative
• direct object
• direct quote

TranslationsEdit

Straight, constant, without interruption

• Albanian: drejtë (sq)
• Arabic: مُسْتَقِيم‎‎ (mustaqīm)
• Asturian: direutu
• Bulgarian: пряк (bg) (prjak), непосредствен (bg) (neposrédstven)
• Catalan: directe (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 直接 (zh) (zhíjiē)

  Wu: 直接 (zeh-cih, jih-cih)

• Czech: přímý (cs)
• Esperanto: rekta (eo)
• Finnish: suora (fi)
• French: direct (fr)
• Friulian: dret
• Galician: directo
• German: direkt (de), unmittelbar (de)
• Greek: άμεσος (el) m (ámesos), απευθείας (el) (apeftheías)
• Haitian Creole: dirèk

• Hindi: सीधा (hi) (sīdhā)
• Interlingua: directe
• Italian: diretto (it)
• Japanese: 直接の (ja) (ちょくせつの, chokusetsu-no)
• Latin: directus
• Maori: horipū, tohitū, pūkaka
• Norwegian: direkt
• Persian: مستقیم‎‎ (fa) (mostaqim)
• Portuguese: directo (pt), direto (pt)
• Romanian: direct (ro)
• Russian: прямо́й (ru) (prjamój), непосре́дственный (ru) (neposrédstvennyj), постоя́нный (ru) (postojánnyj) (e.g. current)
• Spanish: directo (es)
• Swedish: direkt (sv), omedelbar (sv)
• Turkish: doğrudan doğruya (tr)
• Ukrainian: прямий (uk) (prjamyj), безпосередній (uk) (bezposerednij)
• Urdu: سیدھا‎‎ (sīdhā)

AdverbEdit

direct (comparative more direct, superlative most direct)

1. Directly.
   • 2009, Hilary Mantel, Wolf Hall, Fourth Estate 2010, p. 346:

     Presumably Mary is to carry messages that she, Anne, is too delicate to convey direct.

VerbEdit

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

1. To manage, control, steer.

   to direct the affairs of a nation or the movements of an army

2. To aim (something) at (something else).

   They directed their fire towards the men on the wall.

   He directed his question to the room in general.

3. To point out or show to (somebody) the right course or way; to guide, as by pointing out the way.

   He directed me to the left-hand road.

   • Lubbock

     the next points to which I will direct your attention

4. To point out to with authority; to instruct as a superior; to order.

   She directed them to leave immediately.

   • Shakespeare

     I'll first direct my men what they shall do.

5. (dated) To put a direction or address upon; to mark with the name and residence of the person to whom anything is sent.

   to direct a letter

Related termsEdit

Related terms

• adroit
• direction
• directly
• director

• dirge
• dirigible
• dress

TranslationsEdit

to manage, control, steer

• Asturian: dirixir
• Bulgarian: ръководя (bg) (rǎkovodja), управлявам (bg) (upravljavam)
• Catalan: dirigir (ca)
• Danish: dirigere, lede
• Esperanto: gvidi, aldirekti
• Finnish: ohjata (fi)
• Galician: dirixir (gl)
• Greek:

  Ancient: εὐθύνω (euthúnō)

• Hebrew: ניהל‎‎ (nehél)
• Ido: direktar (io)
• Irish: deachtaigh
• Persian: اداره کردن‎‎ (fa) (edáre kardan), رایانیدن‎‎ (rāyānidan)
• Portuguese: dirigir (pt)
• Russian: управля́ть (ru) impf (upravljátʹ)
• Spanish: dirigir (es)
• Swedish: leda (sv), styra (sv)
• Ukrainian: керувати (keruvaty)

to aim at

• Bulgarian: упътвам (bg) (upǎtvam), насочвам (bg) (nasočvam)
• Catalan: adreçar (ca)
• Danish: rette
• Finnish: tähdätä (fi)
• Greek: απευθύνω (el) (apefthýno), απευθύνομαι (el) (apefthýnomai) (at a person)
• Hebrew: כיוון‎‎ (he) (kivén)
• Maori: whakangoto

• Persian: هدایت کردن‎‎ (fa)
• Polish: kierować (pl)
• Portuguese: direcionar (pt)
• Russian: направля́ть (ru) impf (napravljátʹ), напра́вить (ru) pf (naprávitʹ), наце́ливать (ru) impf (nacélivatʹ), наце́лить (ru) pf (nacélitʹ)
• Swedish: rikta (sv)
• Ukrainian: скеровувати (skerovuvaty)

to order

• French: ordonner (fr)
• German: befehlen (de)
• Greek:

  Ancient: συντάσσω (suntássō)

• Plautdietsch: befälen

AnagramsEdit

• Credit, credit, triced

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DutchEdit

PronunciationEdit

• audio

  (file)

AdjectiveEdit

direct (comparative directer, superlative directst)

1. direct

InflectionEdit

Inflection of direct
uninflected	direct
inflected	directe
comparative	directer
		positive	comparative	superlative
predicative/adverbial		direct	directer	het directst het directste
indefinite	m./f. sing.	directe	directere	directste
	n. sing.	direct	directer	directste
	plural	directe	directere	directste
definite		directe	directere	directste
partitive		directs	directers	—

AdverbEdit

direct

1. immediately

SynonymsEdit

• onmiddellijk
• meteen
• rechtstreeks

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FrenchEdit

PronunciationEdit

• IPA^(key): /di.ʁɛkt/

• Audio

  (file)

• Homophones: directe, directes, directs

Etymology 1Edit

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

AdjectiveEdit

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

1. direct

Etymology 2Edit

From directement.

AdverbEdit

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 termsEdit

• directement
• en direct

Related termsEdit

• diriger
• directeur
• direction

See alsoEdit

• droit

AnagramsEdit

• crédit
• décrit
• dicter

Further readingEdit

• “direct” in le Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

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NormanEdit

EtymologyEdit

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

AdjectiveEdit

direct m

1. (Jersey) direct

Derived termsEdit

• directément (“directly”)

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RomanianEdit

EtymologyEdit

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

PronunciationEdit

• IPA^(key): /diˈrekt/

AdjectiveEdit

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

1. direct
2. head-on

DeclensionEdit

declension of direct

		singular			plural
		masculine	neuter	feminine	masculine	neuter	feminine
nominative/ accusative	indefinite	direct		directă	direcți	directe
	definite	directul		directa	direcții	directele
genitive/ dative	indefinite	direct		directe	direcți	directe
	definite	directului		directei	direcților	directelor

AdverbEdit

direct

1. directly
2. straight