at·las
Audio Help [at-luh
s] Pronunciation Key
Audio Help [at-luh
s] Pronunciation Key –noun, plural at·las·es for 1–3, at·lan·tes
Audio Help [at-lan-teez] Pronunciation Key for 5.
Audio Help [at-lan-teez] Pronunciation Key for 5. | 1. | a bound collection of maps. |
| 2. | a bound volume of charts, plates, or tables illustrating any subject. |
| 3. | Anatomy. the first cervical vertebra, which supports the head. |
| 4. | a size of drawing or writing paper, 26 × 34 or 33 inches. |
| 5. | Also called telamon. Architecture. a sculptural figure of a man used as a column. |
Compare caryatid.
[Origin: 1580–90 in sense “prop, support”; as name for a collection of maps, said to be from illustrations of Atlas supporting the globe in early books of this kind
]
] | Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006. |
Atlas
To learn more about Atlas visit Britannica.com
| © 2008 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. |
At·las
Audio Help [at-luh
s] Pronunciation Key
Audio Help [at-luh
s] Pronunciation Key –noun, plural At·las·es for 2, 4.
| 1. | Classical Mythology. a Titan, son of Iapetus and brother of Prometheus and Epimetheus, condemned to support the sky on his shoulders: identified by the ancients with the Atlas Mountains. |
| 2. | a person who supports a heavy burden; a mainstay. |
| 3. | Charles (Angelo Siciliano ), 1894–1972, U.S. body-building advocate, born in Italy. |
| 4. | a liquid-propellant booster rocket, originally developed as the first U.S. ICBM, used with Agena or Centaur upper stages to launch satellites into orbit around the earth and send probes to the moon and planets; also used to launch the Mercury spacecraft into orbit around the earth. |
| Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006. |
| at·las 1
Audio Help (āt'ləs) Pronunciation Key
n. pl. at·las·es
[After Atlas, probably from depictions of him holding the world on his shoulders that appeared on the frontispieces of early works of this kind.] |
| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
| at·las 2
Audio Help (āt'ləs) Pronunciation Key
n. pl. at·las·es
[From Atlas.] |
| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
| At·las
Audio Help (āt'ləs) Pronunciation Key
n.
[Greek; see telə- in Indo-European roots.] |
| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
Atlas
1589, Titan, son of Iapetus and Clymene, supposed to uphold the pillars of heaven, which was his punishment for being the war leader of the Titans in the struggle with the Olympian gods. The name means lit. "The Bearer (of the Heavens)," from stem of tlenai "to bear." Mount Atlas, in Mauritania, was important in Gk. cosmology as a support of the heavens.
| Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper |
atlas
"collection of maps in a volume," 1636, first in ref. to the Eng. translation of "Atlas, sive cosmographicae meditationes de fabrica mundi" (1585) by Flemish geographer Gerhardus Mercator (1512-94), who may have been the first to use this word in this way. A picture of the Titan Atlas holding up the world (see Atlas) appeared on the frontispiece.
| Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper |
| atlas | |
noun | |
| 1. | (Greek mythology) a Titan who was forced by Zeus to bear the sky on his shoulders |
| 2. | a collection of maps in book form |
| 3. | the 1st cervical vertebra |
| 4. | a figure of a man used as a supporting column |
| WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University. |
atlas [ˈӕtləs] noun
a book of maps
Example: My atlas is out of date.
Example: My atlas is out of date.
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| Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary, © 2000-2006 K Dictionaries Ltd. |
Atlas
In classical mythology, a Titan famous for his strength. After the defeat of the Titans by Zeus, Atlas was condemned to support the Earth and sky on his shoulders for eternity.
Note: Since the sixteenth century, pictures of Atlas and his burden have been used as decorations on maps. Accordingly, the word atlas is used for a book of maps.
Note: An “Atlas” or “atlas” is an incredibly strong person or one who carries an enormous burden.
[Chapter:] Mythology and Folklore
| The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
atlas
A bound collection of maps. Atlases are named after the Greek god Atlas.
[Chapter:] World Geography
| The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
ATLAS
Abbreviated Test Language for Avionics Systems
| The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing, © 1993-2007 Denis Howe |
Atlas
At*lan"tes\, n. pl. [L., fr. Gr. ?, pl. of ?. See Atlas.] (Arch.) Figures or half figures of men, used as columns to support an entablature; -- called also telamones. See Caryatides. --Oxf. Gloss.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
Atlas
At*lan"tic\, a. [L. Atlanticus, fr. Atlas. See Atlas and Atlantes.]1. Of or pertaining to Mt. Atlas in Libya, and hence applied to the ocean which lies between Europe and Africa on the east and America on the west; as, the Atlantic Ocean (called also the Atlantic); the Atlantic basin; the Atlantic telegraph. 2. Of or pertaining to the isle of Atlantis. 3. Descended from Atlas. The seven Atlantic sisters. --Milton.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
| ATLAS [National Aeronautics and Space Administration] Atmospheric Laboratory for Applications and Science |
| The American Heritage® Abbreviations Dictionary, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
ATLAS
ATLAS: in Acronym Finder
| Acronym Finder, © 1988-2007 Mountain Data Systems |
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