id ['id] -n
- the one of the three divisions of the psyche in psychoanalytic theory that is completely unconscious and is the source of psychic energy derived from instinctual needs and drives
- idem
ID ['ī-'dē] -vt
- identify
- Idaho
- identification
- independent distributor
- industrial design
- inside diameter; inner diameter; internal diameter
- inside dimensions
- intelligence department
IDA -abbr
- International Development Association
ID card ['ī-'dē-] -n
- a card bearing identifying data (as age or organizational membership) about the individual whose name appears thereon called also identification card identity card
IDDM -abbr
- insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus
IDE -abbr
- integrated drive electronics
idea [ī-'dē-ə, -'dēə also 'ī-(,)dē-ə or 'ī-dē] -n, adj
- a transcendent entity that is a real pattern of which existing things are imperfect representations
- a standard of perfection : ideal
- a plan for action : design
- a visible representation of a conception : a replica of a pattern
- an image recalled by memory
- an indefinite or unformed conception
- an entity (as a thought, concept, sensation, or image) actually or potentially present to consciousness
- a formulated thought or opinion
- whatever is known or supposed about something
- the central meaning or chief end of a particular action or situation
- an image in Mind
ide·al [ī-'dē(-ə)l, 'ī-,] -adj
- existing as an archetypal idea
- existing as a mental image or in fancy or imagination only
- lacking practicality
- relating to or constituting mental images, ideas, or conceptions
- of, relating to, or embodying an ideal
- conforming exactly to an ideal, law, or standard : perfect
- of or relating to philosophical idealism
ideal [ī-'dē(-ə)l-ləs] -n, adj
- a standard of perfection, beauty, or excellence
- one regarded as exemplifying an ideal and often taken as a model for imitation
- an ultimate object or aim of endeavor : goal
- a subset of a mathematical ring that is closed under addition and subtraction and contains the products of any given element of the subset with each element of the ring
ide·al·ise [ī-'dē-(ə-),līz] -vb, n
(variant of idealize)
- to form ideals
- to work idealistically
- to give an ideal form or value to
- to attribute ideal characteristics to
- tended to idealize her teachers
- to treat idealistically
- portraitists who idealize their subjects
ide·al·ism [ī-'dē-(ə-),liz-əm, 'ī-(,)dē-] -n
- a theory that ultimate reality lies in a realm transcending phenomena
- a theory that the essential nature of reality lies in consciousness or reason
- a theory that only the perceptible is real
- a theory that only mental states or entities are knowable
- the practice of forming ideals or living under their influence
- something that is idealized
- literary or artistic theory or practice that affirms the preeminent value of imagination as compared with faithful copying of nature
ide·al·ist [-(ə-)list] -n
- an adherent of a philosophical theory of idealism
- an artist or author who advocates or practices idealism in art or writing
- one guided by ideals
- one that places ideals before practical considerations
idealist -adj
- idealistic
ide·al·is·tic [(,)ī-,dē-(ə-)'lis-tik, ,ī-dē-] -adj, adv
- of or relating to idealists or idealism
ide·al·i·ty [,ī-dē-'a-lə-tē] -n
- the quality or state of being ideal
- existence only in idea
- something imaginary or idealized
ide·al·ize [ī-'dē-(ə-),līz] -vb, n
- to form ideals
- to work idealistically
- to give an ideal form or value to
- to attribute ideal characteristics to
- tended to idealize her teachers
- to treat idealistically
- portraitists who idealize their subjects
ide·al·ly [ī-'dē-ə-lē, -'dē(-ə)l-lē] -adv
- in idea or imagination : mentally
- in relation to an exemplar
- conformably to or in respect to an ideal : perfectly
- for best results
- ideally, the counselor should vary his techniques for each applicant -- T. M. Martinez
- in accordance with an ideal or typical standard : classically
ideal point -n
- a point added to the plane or to space to eliminate special cases
- the point at infinity added in projective geometry as the assumed intersection of two parallel lines
ide·ate ['ī-dē-,āt] -vb
- to form an idea or conception of
- to form an idea
ide·a·tion [,ī-dē-'ā-shən] -n
- the capacity for or the act of forming or entertaining ideas
ide·a·tion·al [-shnəl, -shə-nᵊl] -adj, adv
- of, relating to, or produced by ideation
- of or relating to ideas
idee fixe [(,)ē-,dā-'fēks] -n
- an idea that dominates one's mind esp. for a prolonged period : obsession
idem ['ī-,dem, 'ē-, 'i-] -pron
- the same as something previously mentioned used chiefly in bibliographies
idem·po·tent ['ī-dəm-,pō-tᵊnt] -adj, n
- relating to or being a mathematical quantity which when applied to itself under a given binary operation (as multiplication) equals itself
- relating to or being an operation under which a mathematical quantity is idempotent
iden·tic [ī-'den-tik, ə-] -adj
- : identical: as
- constituting a diplomatic action or expression in which two or more governments follow precisely the same course or employ an identical form
- constituting an action or expression in which a government follows precisely the same course or employs identical forms with reference to two or more other governments
iden·ti·cal [ī-'den-ti-kəl, ə-] -adj, adv, n
- being the same : selfsame
- the identical place we stopped before
- having such close resemblance as to be essentially the same often used with to or with
- having the same cause or origin
- monozygotic
iden·ti·fi·ca·tion [ī-,den-tə-fə-'kā-shən, ə-] -n
- an act of identifying : the state of being identified
- evidence of identity
- psychological orientation of the self in regard to something (as a person or group) with a resulting feeling of close emotional association
- a largely unconscious process whereby an individual models thoughts, feelings, and actions after those attributed to an object that has been incorporated as a mental image
identification card -n
- id card
iden·ti·fi·er [ī-'den-tə-,fī(-ə)r, ə-] -n
- one that identifies
iden·ti·fy [ī-'den-tə-,fī, ə-] -vb, adj, adv
- to cause to be or become identical
- to conceive as united (as in spirit, outlook, or principle)
- groups that are identified with conservation
- to establish the identity of
- to determine the taxonomic position of (a biological specimen)
- to be or become the same
- to practice psychological identification
- identify with the hero of a novel
iden·ti·ty [ī-'den-tə-tē, ə-, -'de-nə-] -n
- sameness of essential or generic character in different instances
- sameness in all that constitutes the objective reality of a thing : oneness
- the distinguishing character or personality of an individual : individuality
- the relation established by psychological identification
- the condition of being the same with something described or asserted
- establish the identity of stolen goods
- an equation that is satisfied for all values of the symbols
- identity element
identity card -n
- id card
identity crisis -n
- personal psychosocial conflict esp. in adolescence that involves confusion about one's social role and often a sense of loss of continuity to one's personality
- a state of confusion in an institution or organization regarding its nature or direction
identity element -n
- an element (as 0 in the set of all integers under addition or 1 in the set of positive integers under multiplication) that leaves any element of the set to which it belongs unchanged when combined with it by a specified operation
identity matrix -n
- a square matrix that has numeral 1's along the principal diagonal and 0's elsewhere
identity politics -n pl but sing or pl in constr
- particularism
identity theft -n
- the illegal use of someone else's personal information (as a Social Security number) in order to obtain money or credit
ideo- -comb form
- idea
ideo·gram ['i-dē-ə-,gram, 'ī-] -n, adj
- a picture or symbol used in a system of writing to represent a thing or an idea but not a particular word or phrase for it
- one that represents not the object pictured but some thing or idea that the object pictured is supposed to suggest
- logogram
ideo·graph ['i-dē-ə-,graf, 'ī-] -n, adj, adv
- ideogram
ide·og·ra·phy [,i-dē-'ä-grə-fē, ,ī-] -n
- the use of ideograms
- the representation of ideas by graphic symbols
ideo·log·i·cal [,ī-dē-ə-'lä-ji-kəl, ,i-] -adj, adv
- relating to or concerned with ideas
- of, relating to, or based on ideology
ide·ol·o·gize [,ī-dē-'ä-lə-,jīz, ,i-] -vt
- to give an ideological character or interpretation to
- to change or interpret in relation to a sociopolitical ideology often seen as biased or limited
ideo·logue ['ī-dē-ə-,lȯg, -,läg] -n
- an impractical idealist : theorist
- an often blindly partisan advocate or adherent of a particular ideology
ide·ol·o·gy [,ī-dē-'ä-lə-jē, ,i-] -n
- visionary theorizing
- a systematic body of concepts esp. about human life or culture
- a manner or the content of thinking characteristic of an individual, group, or culture
- the integrated assertions, theories and aims that constitute a sociopolitical program
ideo·mo·tor [,ī-dē-ə-'mō-tər, ,i-] -adj
- not reflex but motivated by an idea
- ideomotor muscular activity
ides ['īdz] -n pl but sing or pl in constr
- the 15th day of March, May, July, or October or the 13th day of any other month in the ancient Roman calendar
- this day and the seven days preceding it
idio- -comb form
- one's own : personal : separate : distinct
id·i·o·blast ['i-dē-ə-,blast] -n, adj
- a plant cell (as a sclereid) that differs markedly from neighboring cells
id·i·o·cy ['i-dē-ə-sē] -n
- extreme mental retardation
- something notably stupid or foolish
id·i·o·graph·ic [,i-dē-ə-'gra-fik] -adj
- relating to or dealing with something concrete, individual, or unique
id·i·o·lect ['i-dē-ə-,lekt] -n, adj
- the language or speech pattern of one individual at a particular period of life
id·i·om ['i-dē-əm] -n
- the language peculiar to a people or to a district, community, or class : dialect
- the syntactical, grammatical, or structural form peculiar to a language
- an expression in the usage of a language that is peculiar to itself either grammatically (as no, it wasn't me) or in having a meaning that cannot be derived from the conjoined meanings of its elements (as Monday weekfor the Monday a week after next Monday)
- a style or form of artistic expression that is characteristic of an individual, a period or movement, or a medium or instrument
- manner, style
id·i·o·mat·ic [,i-dē-ə-'ma-tik] -adj, adv, n
- of, relating to, or conforming to idiom
- peculiar to a particular group, individual, or style
id·i·o·mor·phic [,i-dē-ə-'mȯr-fik] -adj
- having the proper form or shape used of minerals whose crystalline growth has not been interfered with
id·i·o·path·ic [,i-dē-ə-'pa-thik] -adj, adv
- arising spontaneously or from an obscure or unknown cause : primary
- peculiar to the individual
id·i·o·syn·cra·sy [,i-dē-ə-'siŋ-krə-sē] -n, adj, adv
- a peculiarity of constitution or temperament : an individualizing characteristic or quality
- individual hypersensitiveness (as to a drug or food)
- characteristic peculiarity (as of temperament)
- eccentricity
id·i·ot ['i-dē-ət] -n, adj
- a person affected with extreme mental retardation
- a foolish or stupid person
idiot box -n
- television
id·i·ot·ic [,i-dē-'ä-tik] -adj, adv
- characterized by idiocy
- showing complete lack of thought or common sense : foolish
id·i·o·tism ['i-dē-ə-,ti-zəm] -n
- idiom
- idiom
id·i·ot·ism ['i-dē-ə-(,)ti-zəm] -n
- idiocy
idiot light -n
- a colored light on an instrument panel (as of an automobile) designed to give a warning (as of low oil pressure)
id·i·ot·proof ['i-dē-ət-,prüf] -adj
- extremely easy to operate or maintain
idiot sa·vant ['ē-,dyō-sä-'väⁿ, or same as idiot and savant for respective sing and pl forms] -n
- a person affected with a mental disability (as autism or mental retardation) who exhibits exceptional skill or brilliance in some limited field (as mathematics or music) called also savant
- a person who is highly knowledgeable about one subject but knows little about anything else
id·io·type ['i-dē-ə-,tīp] -n, adj
- the molecular structure and conformation of an antibody that confers its antigenic specificity
idle ['ī-dᵊl] -adj, n, adv
- lacking worth or basis : vain
- : not occupied or employed: as
- having no employment : inactive
- not turned to normal or appropriate use
- not scheduled to compete
- the team will be idle tomorrow
- shiftless, lazy
- having no evident lawful means of support
- to spend time in idleness
- to move idly
- to run at low power and often disconnected usu. so that power is not used for useful work
- to pass in idleness
- to make idle
- workers idled by a strike
- to cause to idle
idler pulley -n
- a guide or tightening pulley for a belt or chain
idler wheel -n
- a wheel, gear, or roller used to transfer motion or to guide or support something
- idler pulley
idlesse ['īd-ləs, īd-'les] -n
- the quality or state of being idle : idleness
ido·crase ['ī-də-,krās, 'i-, -,krāz] -n
- a mineral that is a complex silicate esp. of calcium, magnesium, iron, and aluminum
idol ['ī-dᵊl] -n
- a representation or symbol of an object of worship
- a false god
- a likeness of something
- pretender, impostor
- a form or appearance visible but without substance
- an enchanted phantom, a lifeless idol -- P. B. Shelley
- an object of extreme devotion
- ideal
- a false conception : fallacy
idol·a·ter [ī-'dä-lə-tər] -n
- a worshiper of idols
- a person that admires intensely and often blindly one that is not usu. a subject of worship
idol·a·trous [ī-'dä-lə-trəs] -adj, adv, n
- of or relating to idolatry
- having the character of idolatry
- the religion of idolatrous nationalism -- Aldous Huxley
- given to idolatry
idol·a·try [-trē] -n
- the worship of a physical object as a god
- immoderate attachment or devotion to something
idol·ize ['ī-də-,līz] -vb, n
- to worship as a god
- to love or admire to excess
- the common people whom he so idolized -- Times Lit. Supp.
- to practice idolatry
IDP -abbr
- international driving permit
idyll ['ī-dᵊl, Brit usu 'i-(,)dil] -n
- a simple descriptive work in poetry or prose that deals with rustic life or pastoral scenes or suggests a mood of peace and contentment
- a narrative poem (as Tennyson's Idylls of the King) treating an epic, romantic, or tragic theme
- a lighthearted carefree episode that is a fit subject for an idyll
- a romantic interlude
idyl·lic [ī-'di-lik, chiefly Brit i-] -adj, adv
- pleasing or picturesque in natural simplicity
- of, relating to, or being an idyll