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Ray

 [rey]   Example Sentences Origin

ray

1   [rey]
noun
1.
a narrow beam of light.
2.
a gleam or slight manifestation: a ray of hope.
3.
a raylike line or stretch of something.
4.
light or radiance.
5.
a line of sight.
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6.
Physics, Optics.
a.
any of the lines or streams in which light appears to radiate from a luminous body.
b.
the straight line normal to the wave front in the propagation of radiant energy.
c.
a stream of material particles all moving in the same straight line.
7.
Mathematics.
a.
one of a system of straight lines emanating from a point.
b.
Also called half-line. the part of a straight line considered as originating at a point on the line and as extending in one direction from that point.
8.
any of a system of parts radially arranged.
9.
Zoology.
a.
one of the branches or arms of a starfish or other radiate animal.
b.
one of the bony or cartilaginous rods in the fin of a fish.
10.
Botany.
a.
ray flower.
b.
one of the branches of an umbel.
c.
vascular ray.
d.
(in certain composite plants) the marginal part of the flower head.
11.
Astronomy. one of many long, bright streaks radiating from some of the large lunar craters.
12.
a prominent upright projection from the circlet of a crown or coronet, having a pointed or ornamented termination.
COLLAPSE
verb (used without object)
13.
to emit rays.
14.
to issue in rays.

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Ray is always a great word to know.
So is subatomic. Does it mean:
the amount of heat per unit time per area that can be conducted through a plate of thickness of a given material, differing by one unit of temperature
pertaining to a process that occurs within an atom; noting a particle contained in an atom, such as electrons, protons, or neutrons
LEARN MORE UNUSUAL WORDS WITH WORD DYNAMO...
verb (used with object)
15.
to send forth in rays.
16.
to throw rays upon; irradiate.
17.
to subject to the action of rays, as in radiotherapy.
18.
Informal. to make a radiograph of; x-ray.
19.
to furnish with rays or radiating lines.
Idiom
20.
get/grab some rays, Slang. to relax in the sun, especially to sunbathe.
Origin:
1300–50; Middle English raie, raye < Old French rai < Latin radius radius

Related forms
ray·like, adjective

Synonyms
1. See gleam.

Example Sentences
  • His largest and best measured four feet in length, with a headlight-sized mirror and the zany appearance of a ray gun.
  • Salado's story is a ray of hope in a picture that is often bleak.
  • The gigantic manta ray is actually two distinct species with different behaviors and habitats, new research shows.
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Dictionary.com Unabridged

ray

2   [rey]
noun
any of numerous elasmobranch fishes, adapted for life on the sea bottom, having a flattened body and greatly enlarged pectoral fins with the gills on the undersides.
Origin:
1275–1325; Middle English raye (< Old French rai) < Latin raia

Ray

   [rey for 1, 2, 4, 5; rahy for 3]
noun
1.
John, 1627?–1705, English naturalist.
2.
Man  [man] , 1890–1976, U.S. painter and photographer.
3.
Sat·ya·jit  [suht-yuh-jit] , 1921–92, Indian film director.
4.
Cape, a promontory at the SW extremity of Newfoundland, Canada, on the Cabot Strait, at the entrance of the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
5.
a male given name, form of Raymond.
EXPAND
6.
Also, Raye. a female given name, form of Rachel.
COLLAPSE
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source Link To Ray
Collins
World English Dictionary
ray1 (reɪ)
 
—n
1.  a narrow beam of light; gleam
2.  a slight indication, esp of something anticipated or hoped for: a ray of solace
3.  maths a straight line extending from a point
4.  a thin beam of electromagnetic radiation or particles
5.  any of the bony or cartilaginous spines of the fin of a fish that form the support for the soft part of the fin
6.  any of the arms or branches of a starfish or other radiate animal
7.  astronomy any of a number of bright streaks that radiate from the youngest lunar craters, such as Tycho; they are composed of crater ejecta not yet darkened, and extend considerable distances
8.  botany See medullary ray any strand of tissue that runs radially through the vascular tissue of some higher plants
 
—vb
9.  (of an object) to emit (light) in rays or (of light) to issue in the form of rays
10.  (intr) (of lines, etc) to extend in rays or on radiating paths
11.  (tr) to adorn (an ornament, etc) with rays or radiating lines
 
[C14: from Old French rai, from Latin radius spoke, radius]

ray2 (reɪ)
 
—n
any of various marine selachian fishes typically having a flattened body, greatly enlarged winglike pectoral fins, gills on the undersurface of the fins, and a long whiplike tail. They constitute the orders Torpediniformes (electric rays) and Rajiformes
 
[C14: from Old French raie, from Latin raia]

ray3 (reɪ)
 
—n
music (in tonic sol-fa) the second degree of any major scale; supertonic
 
[C14: see gamut]

Ray1 (reɪ)
 
—n
Cape Ray a promontory in SW Newfoundland, Canada

Ray2 (reɪ)
 
—n
1.  John. 1627--1705, English naturalist. He originated natural botanical classification and the division of flowering plants into monocotyledons and dicotyledons
2.  Man, real name Emmanuel Rudnitsky. 1890--1976, US surrealist photographer
3.  Satyajit (ˈsætjədʒɪt). 1921--92, Indian film director, noted for his Apu trilogy (1955--59)

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Etymonline
Word Origin & History

ray
"beam of light," c.1300, from O.Fr. rai (nom. rais) "ray, spoke," from L. radius "ray, spoke, staff, rod" (see radius). Not common before 17c.; of the sun, usually in reference to heat (beam being preferred for light). Science fiction ray-gun is first recorded 1931 (but cf.
EXPAND
Martian heat ray weapon in H.G. Wells' "War of the Worlds," 1898).

ray
"type of fish related to sharks," 1323, from Fr. raie (13c.), from L. raia, of unknown origin.
COLLAPSE
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
American Heritage
Medical Dictionary

ray (rā)
n.

  1. A narrow beam of light or other electromagnetic radiation.

  2. A narrow beam of particles, as a cathode.

  3. A structure or part having the form of a straight line extending from a point.

Ray (rā), John. 1627-1705.

English naturalist who was the first to use anatomy to distinguish between specific plants and animals. He established the species as the basic classification of living things.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Cite This Source
American Heritage
Science Dictionary
ray   (rā)  Pronunciation Key 

  1. A thin line or narrow beam of light or other radiation.

  2. A geometric figure consisting of the part of a line that is on one side of a point on the line.

  3. See ray flower.


The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
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