it ['it, ət] -pron

  1. that one used as subject or direct object or indirect object of a verb or object of a preposition usu. in reference to a lifeless thing
    • took a quick look at the house and noticed it was very old
    , a plant
    • there is a rosebush near the fence and it is now blooming
    , a person or animal whose sex is unknown or disregarded
    • don't know who it is
    , a group of individuals or things, or an abstract entity
    • beauty is everywhere and it is a source of joy
  2. used as subject of an impersonal verb that expresses a condition or action without reference to an agent
    • it is raining
  3. used as anticipatory subject or object of a verb
    • it is necessary to repeat the whole thing
    often used to shift emphasis to a part of a statement other than the subject
    • it was in this city that the treaty was signed
  4. used with many verbs as a direct object with little or no meaning
    • footed it back to camp
  5. used to refer to an explicit or implicit state of affairs or circumstances
    • how is it going
  6. a crucial or climactic point
    • this is it
  7. the player in a game who performs the principal action of the game (as trying to find others in hide-and-seek)

It -abbr

  1. Italian; Italy

IT -abbr

  1. information technology

it·a·con·ic acid [,i-tə-'kä-nik-] -n

  1. a crystalline dicarboxylic acid C 5H 6O 4obtained usu. by fermentation of sugars with molds (genus Aspergillus) and used as a monomer for polymers and polyesters

ital -abbr

  1. italic; italicized

Ital·ian [ə-'tal-yən, i- also ,ī-] -n

  1. a native or inhabitant of Italy
  2. a person of Italian descent
  3. the Romance language of the Italians

Italian -adj

  1. of, relating to, or characteristic of Italy, the Italians, or Italian

ital·ian·ate [-yə-,nāt] -vt

  1. italianize

Ital·ian·ate [-nət, -,nāt] -adj

  1. Italian in quality or characteristics

Italian dressing -n

  1. a salad dressing flavored esp. with garlic and oregano

Italian greyhound -n

  1. any of a breed of toy dogs resembling the standard greyhound in miniature

ital·ian·ise [ə-'tal-yə-,nīz, i- also ī-] -vb, n

(variant of italianize)

  1. to act Italian
  2. to follow the style or technique of recognized Italian painters
  3. to make Italian (as in appearance or behavior)

Ital·ian·ism [ə-'tal-yə-,ni-zəm, i- also ī-] -n

  1. a quality characteristic of Italy or the Italian people
  2. a characteristic feature of Italian occurring in another language
  3. specialized interest in or emulation of Italian qualities or achievements
  4. promotion or love of Italian policies or ideals

ital·ian·ize [ə-'tal-yə-,nīz, i- also ī-] -vb, n

  1. to act Italian
  2. to follow the style or technique of recognized Italian painters
  3. to make Italian (as in appearance or behavior)

Italian parsley -n

  1. a flat-leaved parsley

Italian sandwich -n

  1. submarine

Italian sonnet -n

  1. a sonnet consisting of an octave rhyming abba abbaand a sestet rhyming in any of various patterns (as cde cdeor cdc dcd) called also Petrarchan sonnet

ital·ic [ə-'ta-lik, i-, ī-] -adj

  1. of or relating to a type style with characters that slant upward to the right (as in these words are italic)
  2. of or relating to a style of slanted cursive handwriting developed in the 15th and 16th centuries
  3. of or relating to ancient Italy, its peoples, or their Indo-European languages

italic -n

  1. an italic character or type
  2. a branch of the Indo-European language family that includes Latin, Oscan, and Umbrian

ital·i·cise [ə-'ta-lə-,sīz, i-, ī-] -vt, n

(variant of italicize)

  1. to print in italics or underscore with a single line
  2. emphasize
    • the microphone italicize s every curdled top note -- P. G. Davis

ital·i·cize [ə-'ta-lə-,sīz, i-, ī-] -vt, n

  1. to print in italics or underscore with a single line
  2. emphasize
    • the microphone italicize s every curdled top note -- P. G. Davis

Ita·lo- [i-'ta-lō also 'i-tə-lō] -comb form

  1. Italian
    • Italo phile
  2. Italian and
    • Italo- Austrian

Ita·lo·phile [i-'ta-lə-,fī(-əl] -adj, n

  1. friendly to or favoring what is Italian

itch ['ich] -vb

  1. to have an itch
    • her arm itch ed
  2. to produce an itchy sensation
    • long underwear that itch es
  3. to have a restless desire or hankering for something
    • were itch ing to go outside
  4. to cause to itch
  5. vex, irritate
  6. an uneasy irritating sensation in the upper surface of the skin usu. held to result from mild stimulation of pain receptors
  7. a skin disorder accompanied by such a sensation
  8. a contagious eruption caused by a mite ( Sarcoptes scabiei) that burrows in the skin and causes intense itching
  9. a restless usu. constant often compulsive desire
    • an itch to travel
  10. lust, prurience

it'd ['i-təd, ,id]

  1. it had : it would

item ['ī-,tem, 'ī-təm] -adv

  1. and in addition : also used to introduce each article in a list or enumeration
  2. warning, hint
  3. a distinct part in an enumeration, account, or series : article
  4. an object of attention, concern, or interest
  5. a separate piece of news or information
  6. a couple in a romantic or sexual relationship
  7. compute, reckon
  8. to set down the particular details of

item·ise ['ī-tə-,mīz] -vt

(variant of itemize)

  1. to set down in detail or by particulars : list
    • itemized all expenses

item·i·za·tion [,ī-tə-mə-'zā-shən] -n

  1. the act of itemizing
  2. an itemized list

item·ize ['ī-tə-,mīz] -vt

  1. to set down in detail or by particulars : list
    • itemized all expenses

it·er·ance ['i-tə-rən(t)s] -n

  1. repetition

it·er·ant [-rənt] -adj

  1. marked by repetition, reiteration, or recurrence
    • iterant echoes

it·er·ate ['i-tə-,rāt] -vt

  1. to say or do again or again and again : reiterate

it·er·a·tion [,i-tə-'rā-shən] -n

  1. : the action or a process of iterating or repeating: as
  2. a procedure in which repetition of a sequence of operations yields results successively closer to a desired result
  3. the repetition of a sequence of computer instructions a specified number of times or until a condition is met
  4. one execution of a sequence of operations or instructions in an iteration
  5. version, incarnation
    • the latest iteration of the operating system

it·er·a·tive ['i-tə-,rā-tiv, -rə-] -adj, adv

  1. : involving repetition: as
  2. expressing repetition of a verbal action
  3. relating to or being iteration of an operation or procedure

ithy·phal·lic [,i-thi-'fa-lik] -adj

  1. of or relating to the phallus carried in procession in ancient festivals of Bacchus
  2. having an erect penis usu. used of figures in an art representation
  3. obscene, lewd

itin·er·an·cy [ī-'ti-nə-rən(t)-sē] -n

  1. a system (as in the Methodist Church) of rotating ministers who itinerate
  2. the act of itinerating
  3. the state of being itinerant

itin·er·ant [-rənt] -adj, n, adv

  1. traveling from place to place
  2. covering a circuit
    • itinerant preacher

itin·er·ary [ī-'ti-nə-,rer-ē, ə-, chiefly Brit ÷-'ti-nə-rē] -n, adj

  1. the route of a journey or tour or the proposed outline of one
  2. a travel diary
  3. a traveler's guidebook

itin·er·ate [ī-'ti-nə-,rāt, ə-] -vi, n

  1. to travel a preaching or judicial circuit

it'll ['i-tᵊl]

  1. it will : it shall

ITO -abbr

  1. International Trade Organization

its ['its, əts] -adj

  1. of or relating to it or itself esp. as possessor, agent, or object of an action
    • going to its kennel
    • a child proud of its first drawings
    • its final enactment into law

it's ['its, əts]

  1. it is : it has

it·self [it-'self, ət-, Southern also -'sef] -pron

  1. that identical one used reflexively
    • watched the cat giving itself a bath
    , for emphasis
    • the letter itself was missing
    , or in absolute constructions
    • itself a splendid specimen of classic art, it has been exhibited throughout the world
  2. its normal, healthy, or sane condition

it·tybit·ty ['i-tē-'bi-tē] -adj

  1. extremely small : tiny

ITU -abbr

  1. International Telecommunication Union
  2. International Typographical Union

ITV -abbr

  1. instructional television