At present
ənt adjective
1.
being, existing, or occurring at this time or now; current: the present ruler.
2.
at this time; at hand; immediate: articles for present use.
3.
Grammar.
a.
noting an action or state occurring at the moment of speaking. Knows is a present form in He knows that.
b.
noting or pertaining to a tense or other verb formation with such meaning.
4.
being with one or others or in the specified or understood place: to be present at the wedding.
5.
being here: Is everyone present?
6.
existing or occurring in a place, thing, combination, or the like: Carbon is present in many minerals.
7.
being actually here or under consideration: the present document; the present topic.
8.
being before the mind.
9.
Obsolete. mentally alert and calm, especially in emergencies.
10.
Obsolete. immediate or instant.
noun
11.
the present time.
12.
Grammar.
a.
the present tense.
b.
a verb formation or construction with present meaning.
c.
a form in the present.
13.
presents, Law. the present writings, or this document, used in a deed of conveyance, a lease, etc., to denote the document itself: Know all men by these presents.
14.
Obsolete. the matter in hand.
00:10
At present
is always a great word to know.
So is interrobang. Does it mean:
| a calculus or concretion found in the stomach or intestines of certain animals, esp. ruminants, formerly reputed to be an effective remedy for poison. |
| a printed punctuation mark (‽), available only in some typefaces, designed to combine the question mark (?) and the exclamation point (!), indicating a mixture of query and interjection, as after a rhetorical question. |
15.
at present, at the present time or moment; now: There are no job openings here at present.
16.
for the present, for now; temporarily: For the present, we must be content with matters as they stand.
Origin:
1250–1300; (adj.) Middle English < Old French < Latin praesent- (stem of praesēns) present participle of praeësse to be present, before others, i.e., to preside, be in charge; (noun) Middle English: presence, spatial or temporal present; partly derivative of the adj., partly < Old French. See pre-, is, -ent
1250–1300; (adj.) Middle English < Old French < Latin praesent- (stem of praesēns) present participle of praeësse to be present, before others, i.e., to preside, be in charge; (noun) Middle English: presence, spatial or temporal present; partly derivative of the adj., partly < Old French. See pre-, is, -ent
Related forms
pres·ent·ness, noun
Antonyms
1. absent.
1. absent.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To at present
Collins
World English Dictionary
present1 (ˈprɛzənt) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —adj | |
| 1. | (prenominal) in existence at the moment in time at which an utterance is spoken or written |
| 2. | (postpositive) being in a specified place, thing, etc: the murderer is present in this room |
| 3. | (prenominal) now in consideration or under discussion: the present topic; the present author |
| 4. | grammar denoting a tense of verbs used when the action or event described is occurring at the time of utterance or when the speaker does not wish to make any explicit temporal reference |
| 5. | archaic readily available; instant: present help is at hand |
| 6. | archaic mentally alert; attentive |
| —n | |
| 7. | the present the time being; now |
| 8. | grammar |
| a. the present tense | |
| b. a verb in this tense | |
| 9. | at present at the moment; now |
| 10. | for the present for the time being; temporarily |
| [C13: from Latin praesens, from praeesse to be in front of, from prae- before, in front + esse to be] | |
| present2 | |
| —vb | |
| 1. | to introduce (a person) to another, esp to someone of higher rank |
| 2. | to introduce to the public: to present a play |
| 3. | to introduce and compere (a radio or television show) |
| 4. | to show; exhibit: he presented a brave face to the world |
| 5. | to put forward; submit: she presented a proposal for a new book |
| 6. | to bring or suggest to the mind: to present a problem |
| 7. | to give or award: to present a prize |
| 8. | to endow with or as if with a gift or award: to present a university with a foundation scholarship |
| 9. | to offer formally: to present one's compliments |
| 10. | to offer or hand over for action or settlement: to present a bill |
| 11. | to represent or depict in a particular manner: the actor presented Hamlet as a very young man |
| 12. | to salute someone with (one's weapon) (usually in the phrase present arms) |
| 13. | to aim or point (a weapon) |
| 14. | to nominate (a clergyman) to a bishop for institution to a benefice in his diocese |
| 15. | to lay (a charge, etc) before a court, magistrate, etc, for consideration or trial |
| 16. | to bring a formal charge or accusation against (a person); indict |
| 17. | chiefly (US) (of a grand jury) to take notice of (an offence) from personal knowledge or observation, before any bill of indictment has been drawn up |
| 18. | (intr) med to seek treatment for a particular symptom or problem: she presented with postnatal depression |
| 19. | informal (intr) to produce a favourable, etc impression: she presents well in public; he presents as harmless but has poisoned his family |
| 20. | present oneself to appear, esp at a specific time and place |
| —n | |
| 21. | anything that is presented; a gift |
| 22. | make someone a present of something to give someone something: I'll make you a present of a new car |
| [C13: from Old French presenter, from Latin praesentāre to exhibit, offer, from praesens | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
present
c.1300, "existing at the time," from O.Fr. present (11c.), from L. præsentem (nom. præsens) "present, immediate, prompt," from prp. of præesse "be before (someone or something), be at hand," from præ- "before" + esse "to be." Meaning "being there" is from mid-14c. As a grammatical
tense, recorded from late 14c.
present
late 13c., "to bring into the presence of," from O.Fr. presenter, from L. præsentare "to place before, show, exhibit," from præsens (see present (adj.)). Meaning "to give as a gift" first recorded mid-13c. Presentable "suitable in appearance" is first attested 1800.
present
early 13c., "thing offered, gift," from O.Fr. present, in phrases en present "(to offer) in the presence of," mettre en present "place before, give," from L.L. inpraesent "face to face," from L. in re præsenti "in the situation in question," from præsens "being there" (see
present (adj.)), on the notion of "bringing something into someone's presence." Meaning "this point in time" (opposed to past and future) is attested from c.1500.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Medical Dictionary
present pre·sent (prĭ-zěnt')
v. pre·sent·ed, pre·sent·ing, pre·sents
To appear or be felt first during birth. Used of the part of the fetus that proceeds first through the birth canal.
To come before a doctor or nurse, as with a medical problem or condition.
To manifest a symptom.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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American Heritage
Idioms & Phrases
at present
Also, at the present time. Now, as in I've not enough cash at present to lend you any, or At present the house is still occupied. This slightly longer way of saying "at this time" formerly was even longer
at this present or at that presentdenoting a more specific time. [Mid-1600s] Also see at this point.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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