All 24 Uses of

direct

in

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

I asked if he could direct me to Lacks Town, where I planned to look for mailboxes with the name Lacks on them, then knock on doors asking about Henrietta.
Chpt 1.10 *

direct = give directions to

Directly across the street stood a small one-room shack about seven feet wide and twelve feet long; it was made of unpainted wood, with large gaps between the wallboards where vines and weeds grew.
Chpt 1.10

directly = close (without anything in between)

The NFIP's March of Dimes was bringing in an average of $50 million in donations each year, and its director wanted to give much of that money to cell culturists so they could find a way to mass-produce cells, which they'd been wanting to do for years anyway.
Chpt 2.13

director = supervisor (person in charge)

standard 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 NFIP chose the Tuskegee Institute for the project because of Charles Bynum, director of "Negro Activities" for the foundation.
Chpt 2.13

At one point, a health-education director at the Young Women's Christian Association heard about tissue culture and wrote a letter to a group of researchers saying she hoped they'd be able to use it to help the YWCA's older women.
Chpt 2.13

Then suddenly he yelled at the ground, as if he was talking directly to Henrietta.
Chpt 2.16

directly = personally (person-to-person)

And Southam probably would have continued doing this for years had he not made an arrangement on July 5, 1963, with Emanuel Mandel, director of medicine at the Jewish Chronic Disease Hospital in Brooklyn, to use the hospital's patients for his research.
Chpt 2.17

director = supervisor (person in charge)

standard 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.

One member of the hospital's board of directors, a lawyer named William Hyman, didn't think they were being overly sensitive.
Chpt 2.17 *

board of directors = members of a board that oversees the affairs of a corporation or other institution

They transported cultures in locked suitcases and developed a list of criteria all cells had to meet before being banked: each had to be tested for any possible contamination, and they all had to come directly from the original source.
Chpt 2.18

directly = straight (without anything in between)

I direct you to provide accommodations for three or four hundred children of this class; you are also authorized to receive into this asylum, at your discretion, as belonging to such class, colored children who have lost one parent only, and in exceptional cases to receive colored children who are not orphans, but may be in such circumstances as to require the aid of charity.
Chpt 2.21 *

direct = instruct

The man who discovered that fact was Walter Nelson-Rees, a chromosome expert who was director of cell culture at the Naval laboratory.
Chpt 2.22

director = supervisor (person in charge)

standard 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.

When I talked to Susan Hsu, now a director of medical genetics at the American Red Cross, she told me that working with McKusick on HeLa cells was a highlight of her career.
Chpt 3.23

Had Moore known this before Golde patented them, he could have approached the companies directly and worked out a deal to sell the cells himself.
Chpt 3.25

directly = personally (without anyone in between)

Then, without so much as a pause, she began talking directly to her mother: We miss you, Mama.
Chpt 3.28

directly = personally (person-to-person)

Cofield then filed a lawsuit against Deborah, Lawrence, Courtney Speed, the Henrietta Lacks Health History Museum Foundation, and a long list of Hopkins officials: the president, the medical records administrator, an archivist, Richard Kidwell, and Grover Hutchins, the director of autopsy services.
Chpt 3.28

director = supervisor (person in charge)

standard 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.

He claimed that Deborah could not legally prohibit him from doing research for the Henrietta Lacks Health History Museum Foundation, because she was not a member of its board of directors, or officially involved with the foundation in any way.
Chpt 3.28

board of directors = members of a board that oversees the affairs of a corporation or other institution

She sprayed directly in front of my nose several times when I sneezed, but mostly she sprayed it out the window when we stopped somewhere that looked particularly unsanitary, which happened often.
Chpt 3.29

directly = close (without anything in between)

Her room was about six feet wide, with a twin bed against one wall and a small desk directly across from it, nearly touching the bed.
Chpt 3.31 *

directly = close

His name was Paul Lurz, and he was the hospital's director of performance and improvement, but he also happened to be a social worker who'd majored in history, which was his passion.
Chpt 3.33

director = supervisor (person in charge)

standard 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 photo was attached to the top corner of Elsie's autopsy report, which Lurz and I began reading, saying occasional phrases out loud: "diagnosis of idiocy" … "directly connected with syphilis" … "self-induced vomiting by thrusting fingers down her throat for six months prior to death."
Chpt 3.33

directly = closely (without anything in between)

According to Judith Greenburg, director of the Division of Genetics and Developmental Biology at the National Institute of General Medical Science, the NIH now has "very stringent guidelines" requiring consent for any tissues collected for their banks.
Chpt Aft.

director = supervisor (person in charge)

standard 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.

Ellen Wright Clayton, a physician and lawyer who is director of the Center for Biomedical Ethics and Society at Vanderbilt University, says there needs to be a "very public conversation" about all of this.
Chpt Aft.

Lori Andrews, director of the Institute for Science, Law and Technology at the Illinois Institute of Technology, wants something more drastic: she has called for people to get policymakers' attention by becoming "conscientious objectors in the DNA draft" and refusing to give tissue samples.
Chpt Aft.

Wayne Grody, director of the Diagnostic Molecular Pathology Laboratory at the University of California, Los Angeles, was once a fierce opponent of consent for tissue research.
Chpt Aft.

Click For
Best Example Sentences
From Other Sources
Grouped by 6 Meanings

Definitions:

(1) (direct as in: depart directly)
without delay, or in the quickest manner, or without going somewhere else first

You may see the term direct flight used in a technical manner that is not as quick as a non-stop flight. In technical usage, a direct flight from Los Angeles to New York could stop at a city on the way, but you would not get off the plane during the stop.
(2) (direct as in: directly above; or buy direct from)
straight (exactly where stated); or without involvement of anything in between
The exact meaning of this sense of direct is subject to its context. For example:
- "The road runs directly to Las Vegas." -- straight (without varying from a straight line)
- "It was a direct hit." -- exact
- "The plant is in direct sunlight." -- unobstructed (without anything in between)
- "She wants a direct meeting with him." -- personal (without other people in between)
- "She paid direct attention to what he was reading." -- close
- "a direct gaze" -- straight, steady, or focused--not a brief glance taken while generally looking at other things; not a sideways look
(3) (direct as in: was direct in my instructions)
straightforward (uncomplicated or simple -- perhaps also indicating openness and honesty, or little concern for others' feelings)
(4) (direct as in: directed her question to)
to indicate direction; or to cause movement or focus in a direction or towards an object
The exact meaning of this sense of direct is subject to its context. For example:
- "intentionally directed fire at unarmed civilians" -- aimed a gun
- "directed the question to her" -- aimed a question
- "directed her north" -- pointed in a particular direction
- "directed attention to the 3rd paragraph" -- focused attention on a particular object
- "The sound of her voice directed him to the kitchen." -- guided or gave directions to someone to help them move to a particular place
- "She directed him to the airport." -- gave directions to send someone to a particular place
- "She directed the boat north." -- steered it
- "directed the letter to" -- send a letter to a particular person by putting a name and address on it
(5) (direct as in: directed the jury to...)
give instructions or commands
(6) (direct as in: directed the movie)
supervise, control, or to be in charge of
(7) (meaning too rare to warrant focus)
Direct can take on many specialized meanings not included in this dictionary.
As an adjective or adverb, most all senses of direct involve an uninterrupted connection and/or clarity (clear, unambiguous communication) as in:
- direct action
- direct descendant
- direct line (with regard to genealogy)
- direct deposit
- direct object
- direct kick
- direct cost
- direct investment
- direct elections
- direct current
As a verb, most all of the senses of direct involve giving orders or aiming.

Page Numbers by Book Edition

direct in The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

direct

in

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks