| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000. |
| |
| device |
| |
| SYLLABICATION: | de·vice |
| PRONUNCIATION: |  d -v s |
| NOUN: | 1. A contrivance or an invention serving a particular purpose, especially a machine used to perform one or more relatively simple tasks. 2a. A technique or means. b. A plan or scheme, especially a malign one. 3. A literary contrivance, such as parallelism or personification, used to achieve a particular effect. 4. A decorative design, figure, or pattern, as one used in embroidery. See synonyms at figure. 5. A graphic symbol or motto, especially in heraldry. 6. Archaic The act, state, or power of devising. | | IDIOM: | leave to (one's) own devices To allow to do as one pleases: left the child to her own devices for an hour in the afternoon. | | ETYMOLOGY: | Middle English, from Old French devis, division, wish, and Old French devise, design, both from Latin dvsus, dvsa, past participle of dvidere, to divide, separate. See divide.
| | |
| |
| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by the Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
|
|
