utility

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

1. n. The quality or condition of being useful; usefulness: "I have always doubted the utility of these conferences on disarmament” ( Winston S. Churchill).
2. n. A useful article or device.
3. n. A public utility.
4. n. A commodity or service, such as electricity, water, or public transportation, that is provided by a public utility.
5. n. Computer Science A utility program.
6. adj. Used, serving, or working in several capacities as needed, especially:
7. adj. Prepared to play any of the smaller theatrical roles on short notice: a utility cast member.
8. adj. Capable of playing as a substitute in any of several positions: a utility infielder.
9. adj. Designed for various often heavy-duty practical uses: a utility knife; a utility vehicle.
10. adj. Raised or kept for the production of a farm product rather than for show or as pets: utility livestock.
11. adj. Of the lowest U.S. Government grade: utility beef.

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

1. n. In political economics, the capacity of an object for the satisfaction of a human want.
2. n. The character of being useful; usefulness; profitableness; the state of being serviceable or conducive to some desirable or valuable end.
3. n. Use; profit.
4. n. A useful thing.

Wiktionary

1. n. The state or condition of being useful; usefulness.
2. n. Something that is useful.
3. n. economics The ability of a commodity to satisfy needs or wants; the satisfaction experienced by the consumer of that commodity.
4. n. business, finance A service provider, such as an electric company or water company; or, the securities of such a provider.
5. n. computing A software program designed to perform a single task or a small range of tasks, often to help manage and tune computer hardware, an operating system or application software.
6. n. sports The ability to play multiple positions.

GNU Webster's 1913

1. n. The quality or state of being useful; usefulness; production of good; profitableness to some valuable end.
2. n. (Polit. Econ.) Adaptation to satisfy the desires or wants; intrinsic value. See Note under Value, 2.
3. n. Happiness; the greatest good, or happiness, of the greatest number, -- the foundation of utilitarianism.

WordNet 3.0

1. n. a facility composed of one or more pieces of equipment connected to or part of a structure and designed to provide a service such as heat or electricity or water or sewage disposal
2. n. (economics) a measure that is to be maximized in any situation involving choice
3. n. a company that performs a public service; subject to government regulation
4. n. the service (electric power or water or transportation) provided by a public utility
5. adj. capable of substituting in any of several positions on a team
6. adj. used of beef; usable but inferior
7. n. the quality of being of practical use
8. n. (computer science) a program designed for general support of the processes of a computer