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continent - 8 dictionary results
con⋅ti⋅nent
[kon-tn-uh
nt] 
–noun
| 1. | one of the main landmasses of the globe, usually reckoned as seven in number (Europe, Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Australia, and Antarctica). |
| 2. | a comparable landmass on another planet. |
| 3. | the mainland, as distinguished from islands or peninsulas. |
| 4. | the Continent, the mainland of Europe, as distinguished from the British Isles. |
| 5. | a continuous tract or extent, as of land. |
| 6. | Archaic. something that serves as a container or boundary. |
–adjective
| 7. | exercising or characterized by restraint in relation to the desires or passions and esp. to sexual desires; temperate. |
| 8. | able to control urinary and fecal discharge. |
| 9. | Obsolete. containing; being a container; capacious. |
| 10. | Obsolete. restraining or restrictive. |
| 11. | Obsolete. continuous; forming an uninterrupted tract, as land. |
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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|
Link To continent
| con·ti·nent 1 (kŏn'tə-nənt) n.
[Latin (terra) continēns, continent-, continuous (land), present participle of continēre, to hold together; see contain.] |
| con·ti·nent 2 (kŏn'tə-nənt) adj. Exercising continence. [Middle English, from Latin continēns, present participle of continēre, to restrain; see contain.] con'ti·nent·ly adv. |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Continent
Con"ti*nent\, a. [L. continens, -entis, prop., p. pr. of continere to hold together, to repress: cf. F. continent. See Contain.]1. Serving to restrain or limit; restraining; opposing. [Obs.] --Shak. 2. Exercising restraint as to the indulgence of desires or passions; temperate; moderate. Have a continent forbearance till the speed of his rage goes slower. --Shak. 3. Abstaining from sexual intercourse; exercising restraint upon the sexual appetite; esp., abstaining from illicit sexual intercourse; chaste. My past life Hath been as continent, as chaste, as true, As I am now unhappy. --Shak. 4. Not interrupted; connected; continuous; as, a continent fever. [Obs.] The northeast part of Asia is, if not continent with the west side of America, yet certainly it is the least disoined by sea of all that coast. --Berrewood.Continent
Con"ti*nent\, n. [L. continens, prop., a holding together: cf. F. continent. See Continent, a.]1. That which contains anything; a receptacle. [Obs.] The smaller continent which we call a pipkin. --Bp. Kennet. 2. One of the grand divisions of land on the globe; the main land; specifically (Phys. Geog.), a large body of land differing from an island, not merely in its size, but in its structure, which is that of a large basin bordered by mountain chains; as, the continent of North America. Note: The continents are now usually regarded as six in number: North America, South America, Europe, Asia, Africa, and Australia. But other large bodies of land are also reffered to as continents; as, the Antarctic continent; the continent of Greenland. Europe, Asia, and Africa are often grouped together as the Eastern Continent, and North and South America as the Western Continent. The Continent, the main land of Europe, as distinguished from the islands, especially from England.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : continent
Spanish:
continente,
German:
der Kontinent,
Japanese:
大陸
continent
1382, "self-restraining," from L. continentem (nom. continens), prp. of continere "hold together" (see contain). Meaning moved from "exercising self-restraint" to "chaste" 14c., and to bowel and bladder control 19c. Geographical sense is 1559, from continent land (1470), translating L. terra continens "continuous land" (see continue).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Main Entry: con·ti·nent
Pronunciation: 'känt-&n-&nt
Function: adjective
: exercising continence —con·ti·nent·ly adverb
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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| continent (kŏn'tə-nənt) Pronunciation Key
One of the seven great landmasses of the Earth. The continents are Africa, Antarctica, Asia, Australia, Europe, North America, and South America. |
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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