All 16 Uses of
direct
in
Do You Speak American?
- Many of the slang words are our best; slang words among fighting men, gamblers, thieves, are powerful words.... The appetite of the people of These States, in popular speeches and writings, is for unhemmed latitude, coarseness, directness, live epithets, expletives, words of opprobrium, resistance.†
Chpt 1 *directness = the quality or degree of being straightforward or clear (sometimes indicating that truth is not worded carefully to spare feelings or gain advantage)
- One of the leading scholars in the field is William Labov, of the University of Pennsylvania, director of the Atlas of North American English and author of a series of books on how language changes and why.†
Chpt 2standard suffix: The suffix "-or" often converts a verb to a noun that means "a person who." This is the pattern you see in words like actor, editor, and visitor.
- The director said, "You can't talk like that if you want to be in this business.†
Chpt 3
- When John Kerry was competing in the 2004 presidential primaries, his Virginia campaign director, Susan Swecker, told reporters that the political complexion of the state had changed, and added, "This ain't your mama's South anymore."†
Chpt 4
- Steven Camarota, research director of the Center for Immigration Studies (which wants immigration limited), said the numbers raise a troubling question: "Is the level of immigration so high that it's overwhelming the assimilation process?†
Chpt 5
- The director of the project, Noma LeMoine, said they ran into some flak from critics, who thought they were teaching African American language, teaching Ebonics, which they don't need to do, because the kids already know it.†
Chpt 6
- We may never have been near a studio lot, but we all know how to talk, literally and figuratively, of stars, megastars, zoom-ins, cutting to the chase, dissolves, and director's cut.†
Chpt 7
- Winnie Holzman is a writer and director acclaimed for her empathy with teenagers in her cult TV series, My So-Called Life.†
Chpt 7
- Writer-director Amy Heckerling had a different purpose in making another cult classic, her film Clueless, starring Alicia Silverstone.†
Chpt 7
- We came to talk first with Clifford Nass, professor and director of the Institute for Communication Research.†
Chpt 8 *
- To that mixture were added influences from Germans, Austrians, Poles, Italians, and Czechs who immigrated directly to Texas from Europe through the Gulf of Mexico.†
Chpt 4
- The jobs they fill cannot be exported directly to the Third World, but these low-wage workers are imported from it, and the effect on the global economy is the same.†
Chpt 5
- Among their subjects were elderly black people who were born into slavery in the United States, the children or grandchildren of slaves brought directly from Africa.†
Chpt 6
- His Lexus was fitted with its own navigation system, which was programmed to take him a more direct way, and a woman's voice kept breaking in to remind us.†
Chpt 8 *
- Before joining Microsoft, he was on the faculty at Carnegie Mellon, where he directed the effort to develop a speech-recognition system.†
Chpt 8
- Callers are directed to say specific things like city names, dates, or flight numbers.†
Chpt 8
Definitions:
-
(1)
(direct as in: directly above; or buy direct) without anything in between -- whether in time, space, or involvement
-
(2)
(direct as in: gave a direct answer) straightforward -- often clear, open, or blunt in speech or behavior
-
(3)
(direct as in: direct a question; or direct a film) to guide, aim, or manage -- such as actions, attention, speech, a project or company
-
(4)
(meaning too rare to warrant focus) meaning too rare to warrant focus:
Direct can take on many specialized meanings not included in this dictionary.As an adjective or adverb, direct usually means there is a clear or straight connection with nothing in the way. It can also mean easy to understand, without confusion. For example:- Direct action – taking quick and clear steps to make something happen
- Direct descendant – someone who comes straight from an ancestor, like a grandchild
- Direct line (in genealogy) – a family connection that goes straight from one generation to the next
- Direct deposit – money that is sent straight into a bank account
- Direct object – in a sentence, the person or thing that receives the action of the verb
- Direct kick – in sports, a kick where the ball can go straight into the goal without touching another player
- Direct cost – a cost that comes straight from making a product or providing a service
- Direct investment – putting money directly into a company or project
- Direct elections – when people vote for leaders without going through an extra step
- Direct current (DC) – a type of electric flow that moves in only one direction
As a verb, most all of the senses of direct involve giving orders or aiming.