Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A portion, division, piece, or segment of a whole.
  • noun Any of several equal portions or fractions that can constitute a whole or into which a whole can be divided.
  • noun A division of a book or artistic work such as a film.
  • noun An organ, member, or other division of an organism.
  • noun The external genitals.
  • noun A component that can be separated from or attached to a system; a detachable piece.
  • noun A region, area, land, or territory.
  • noun A role.
  • noun One's responsibility, duty, or obligation; share.
  • noun Abilities or talents.
  • noun The music or score for a particular instrument, as in an orchestra.
  • noun One of the melodic divisions or voices of a contrapuntal composition.
  • noun The line where the hair on the head is parted.
  • intransitive verb To cause to move apart; put apart.
  • intransitive verb To divide into two or more parts; split.
  • intransitive verb To break up the relationship or association of: synonym: separate.
  • intransitive verb To comb (hair, for example) away from a dividing line, as on the scalp.
  • intransitive verb To go away from; depart from.
  • intransitive verb Archaic To divide into shares or portions.
  • intransitive verb To be divided or separated.
  • intransitive verb To move apart.
  • intransitive verb To leave one another; take leave.
  • intransitive verb To go away from another; depart.
  • intransitive verb Archaic To die.
  • intransitive verb To separate or divide into ways going in different directions.
  • intransitive verb To disagree or stop associating because of a disagreement.
  • adverb Partially; in part.
  • adjective Not full or complete; partial.
  • idiom (for (one's) part) So far as one is concerned.
  • idiom (for the most part) To the greater extent; generally or mostly.
  • idiom (in good part) Good-naturedly or with good grace; without taking offense.
  • idiom (in part) To some extent; partly.
  • idiom (on the part of) Regarding or with respect to (the one specified).
  • idiom (part and parcel) A basic or essential part.
  • idiom (part company/ways) To leave one another's presence; go away or separate.
  • idiom (part company/ways) To disagree or stop associating because of a disagreement.
  • idiom (take part) To join in; participate.
  • idiom (take (someone's) part) To side with in a disagreement; support.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • Partly; partially; in some measure.
  • An abbreviation of participle.
  • noun A separate division, fraction, or fragment of a whole; a section or division; a piece: as, a part of the money; a part of the true cross.
  • noun A division of a thing not separated in reality, but considered or mentioned by itself: as, the younger part of the community.

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English, from Old French, from Latin pars, part-; see perə- in Indo-European roots.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Middle English part, from Old English part ("part") and Old French part ("part"); both from Latin partem, accusative of pars ("piece, portion, share, side, party, faction, role, character, lot, fate, task, lesson, part, member"), from Proto-Indo-European *par-, *per- (“to cut, bore”). Akin to portio ("a portion, part"), parare ("to make ready, prepare"). Displaced Middle English del, dele ("part") (from Old English dǣl ("part, distribution")), Middle English dale ("part, portion") (from Old English dāl ("portion")), Middle English sliver ("part, portion") (from Middle English sliven ("to cut, cleave"), from Old English (tō)slīfan ("to split")).

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Examples

  • Miss Snark, the literary agent: Is it Crap..cover letters.. part huit..part soy.

    Is it Crap..cover letters.. part huit..part soy. Miss Snark 2005

  • And the same Apostle tells us, that _now we see through A Glass darkly_; and that _we know in part, and prophesie in part_ [43].

    The Improvement of Human Reason Exhibited in the Life of Hai Ebn Yokdhan Ibn Tufail

  • These facts, or principles, will very probably be found to form only a part of her operations; -- but as they do really form _a part_, they will become a nucleus, round which all the remaining principles when discovered will necessarily congregate.

    A Practical Enquiry into the Philosophy of Education James Gall

  • Speaking of the condition of slaves, in the eastern part of that state, the report says, -- "The master puts the unfortunate wretches upon short allowances, scarcely sufficient for their sustenance, so that a _great part_ of them go _half starved_ much of the time."

    The Anti-Slavery Examiner, Omnibus American Anti-Slavery Society

  • Another conclusion from the facts enumerated above is that there has obviously been a great world catastrophe, and that this must be assigned as the cause of a large part, -- _just how large a part_ it is at present difficult to say, -- of the changes recorded in the fossiliferous rocks.

    Q. E. D., or New Light on the Doctrine of Creation George McCready Price

  • Speaking of the condition of slaves, in the eastern part of that state, the report says, -- "The master puts the unfortunate wretches upon short allowances, scarcely sufficient for their sustenance, so that a _great part_ of them go _half starved_ much of the time."

    The Anti-Slavery Examiner, Part 3 of 4 American Anti-Slavery Society

  • The _part_ in the hair is singularly continued in the part between the wings of the golden butterfly ornamenting the head, the eyes are just sufficiently turned aside to give them the appearance of avoiding a direct gaze, and the tight-fitting gown is of white

    Continental Monthly , Vol. 5, No. 6, June, 1864 Devoted to Literature and National Policy Various

  • “I wouldn’t wish, for my part, ” replied Mrs Sullivan, “to have anything to do wid it—neither act nor part”; and she crossed herself devoutly, on contemplating such an unholy alliance as that at which her companion hinted.

    The Lianhan Shee 1921

  • And I stand here to-day, sir, to say that with an exception, of which I shall soon speak, _to procure such a lawful investigation of the authority under which they claimed to act, was the part I took in that day's proceedings, and the only part_.

    Masterpieces of Negro Eloquence The Best Speeches Delivered by the Negro from the days of Slavery to the Present Time Various 1905

  • Mary "the sixth part of one part of two tenements," the death of the second sister should have secured her the _fifth part_ of one part of two tenements, plus the fraction already inherited by the second from the first, or, more simply, the fifth part of two parts of two tenements.

    Shakespeare's Family 1885

Comments

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  • Contronymic in the sense: inclusion vs. exclusion.

    January 27, 2007

  • Trap in reverse.

    November 3, 2007

  • "part" in Hungarian means: (river) bank / (sea) shore

    August 1, 2012