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erect

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e⋅rect

  [i-rekt]
Use erect in a Sentence
–adjective
1. upright in position or posture: to stand or sit erect.
2. raised or directed upward: a dog with ears erect.
3. Botany. vertical throughout; not spreading or declined: an erect stem; an erect leaf or ovule.
4. Heraldry.
a. (of a charge) represented palewise: a sword erect.
b. (of an animal or part of an animal) represented upright: a boar's head erect.
5. Optics. (of an image) having the same position as the object; not inverted.
–verb (used with object)
6. to build; construct; raise: to erect a house.
7. to raise and set in an upright or vertical position: to erect a telegraph pole.
8. to set up or establish, as an institution; found.
9. to bring about; cause to come into existence: to erect barriers to progress.
10. Geometry. to draw or construct (a line or figure) upon a given line, base, or the like.
11. to form or create legally (usually fol. by into): to erect a territory into a state.
12. Optics. to change (an inverted image) to the normal position.
13. Machinery. to assemble; make ready for use.
–verb (used without object)
14. to become erect; stand up or out.
Origin:
1350–1400; ME < L ērēctus raised up (ptp. of ērigere), equiv. to ē- e- + reg- guide, direct (see royal ) + -tus ptp. suffix

Related forms:
e⋅rect⋅a⋅ble, adjective
e⋅rect⋅ly, adverb
e⋅rect⋅ness, noun

Synonyms:
1. standing, vertical. See upright. 6. upraise.

Antonyms:
1. reclining.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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e·rect   (ĭ-rěkt')   
adj.  

  1. Being in a vertical, upright position: an erect lily stalk; an erect posture.

  2. Being in a stiff, rigid physiological condition.

  3. Archaic Wide-awake; alert.

tr.v.   e·rect·ed, e·rect·ing, e·rects

  1. To construct by assembling: erect a skyscraper.

  2. To raise to a rigid or upright condition.

  3. To fix in an upright position.

  4. To set up; establish: erect a dynasty.

  5. Mathematics To construct (a perpendicular, for example) from or on a given base.


[Middle English, from Latin ērēctus, past participle of ērigere, to set up : ē-, ex-, ex- + regere, to guide; see reg- in Indo-European roots.]
e·rect'a·ble adj., e·rect'ly adv., e·rect'ness n.
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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Word Origin & History

erect  (adj.)
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.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Legal Dictionary

Main Entry: erect
Function: transitive verb
: to give legal existence to by a formal act of authority erected within the jurisdiction of any other State —U.S. Constitution article IV> —erec·tion noun
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

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
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

erect e·rect (ĭ-rěkt')
adj.

  1. Being in or having a vertical, upright position.

  2. Being in or having a stiff, rigid physiological condition.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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