c.1386, from L. erectus "upright," pp. of erigere "raise or set up," from e- "up" + regere "to direct, keep straight, guide" (see regal).Erection is 1503; of the penis, 1594.
upright in position or posture; "an erect stature"; "erect flower stalks"; "for a dog, an erect tail indicates aggression"; "a column still vertical amid the ruins"; "he sat bolt upright" [ant: unerect]
Main Entry: erect Pronunciation: i-'rekt Function: adjective 1: standing up or out from the body <erect hairs> 2:
being in a state of physiological erection
Main Entry: erect Function: transitive verb : to give legal existence to by a formal act of authority <no new State shall be formed or erected within the
jurisdiction of any other State —U.S. Constitution article IV> —erec·tionnoun
A*lert"\ ([.a]*l[~e]rt"), a. [F. alerte, earlier [`a] l'erte on the watch, fr. It. all' erta on the watch, prop. (standing) on a height, where one can look around; erta a declivity, steep, erto steep, p. p. of ergere, erigere, to erect, raise, L. erigere. See Erect.]1. Watchful; vigilant; active in vigilance. 2. Brisk; nimble; moving with celerity. An alert young fellow. --Addison. Syn: Active; agile; lively; quick; prompt.
E*rect"\, a. [L. erectus, p. p. of erigere to erect; e out + regere to lead straight. See Right, and cf. Alert.]1. Upright, or having a vertical position; not inverted; not leaning or bent; not prone; as, to stand erect. Two of far nobler shape, erect and tall. --Milton. Among the Greek colonies and churches of Asia, Philadelphia is still erect -- a column of ruins. --Gibbon. 2. Directed upward; raised; uplifted. His piercing eyes, erect, appear to view Superior worlds, and look all nature through. --Pope. 3. Bold; confident; free from depression; undismayed. But who is he, by years Bowed, but erect in heart? --Keble. 4. Watchful; alert. Vigilant and erect attention of mind. --Hooker. 5. (Bot.) Standing upright, with reference to the earth's surface, or to the surface to which it is attached. 6. (Her.) Elevated, as the tips of wings, heads of serpents, etc.
E*rect"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Erected; p. pr. & vb. n. Erecting.]1. To raise and place in an upright or perpendicular position; to set upright; to raise; as, to erect a pole, a flagstaff, a monument, etc. 2. To raise, as a building; to build; to construct; as, to erect a house or a fort; to set up; to put together the component parts of, as of a machine. 3. To lift up; to elevate; to exalt; to magnify. That didst his state above his hopes erect. --Daniel. I, who am a party, am not to erect myself into a judge. --Dryden. 4. To animate; to encourage; to cheer. It raiseth the dropping spirit, erecting it to a loving complaisance. --Barrow. 5. To set up as an assertion or consequence from premises, or the like. "To erect conclusions." --Sir T. Browne. "Malebranche erects this proposition." --Locke. 6. To set up or establish; to found; to form; to institute. "To erect a new commonwealth." --Hooker. Erecting shop (Mach.), a place where large machines, as engines, are put together and adjusted. Syn: To set up; raise; elevate; construct; build; institute; establish; found.
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