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ray

 - 16 dictionary results

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.
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.
–verb (used without object)
13. to emit rays.
14. to issue in rays.
–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 or grab some rays, Slang. to relax in the sun, esp. to sunbathe.
Use ray in a Sentence
Origin:
1300–50; ME raie, raye < OF rai < L radius radius

Related forms:
raylike, adjective

Synonyms:
1. See gleam.

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; ME raye (< OF rai) < L 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.
6. Also, Raye. a female given name, form of Rachel.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2010.
Cite This Source Link To ray
ray 1   (rā)   
n.  

    1. A thin line or narrow beam of light or other radiant energy.

    2. A graphic or other representation of such a line.

    3. A ray flower or the corolla of a ray flower.

    4. A branch of an umbel.

    5. One of the bony spines supporting the membrane of a fish's fin.

    6. One of the arms of a starfish or other radiate animal.

  2. Radiance; light.

  3. A small amount; a trace: not a ray of hope left.

  4. Mathematics A straight line extending from a point. Also called half-line.

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

  6. Any of the bright streaks that are seen radiating from some craters on the moon.

  7. Botany

    1. A ray flower or the corolla of a ray flower.

    2. A branch of an umbel.

    3. One of the bony spines supporting the membrane of a fish's fin.

    4. One of the arms of a starfish or other radiate animal.

  8. Zoology

    1. One of the bony spines supporting the membrane of a fish's fin.

    2. One of the arms of a starfish or other radiate animal.

  9. rays Slang Sunshine: Let's go to the beach and catch some rays.

tr.v.   rayed, ray·ing, rays

  1. To send out as rays; emit.

  2. To supply with rays or radiating lines.

  3. To cast rays on; irradiate.


[Middle English, from Old French rai, from Latin radius.]
ray 2   (rā)   
n.  Any of various marine fishes of the order Rajiformes or Batoidei, having cartilaginous skeletons, horizontally flattened bodies, and narrow tails.

[Middle English raye, from Old French raie, from Latin raia.]
Ray   (rā)   
A promontory of extreme southwest Newfoundland, Canada, on Cabot Strait.
Ray, John 1627-1705.  
English naturalist who was the first to use anatomy to distinguish between specific plants and animals and established "species" as the basic classification of living things.
Ray, Man 1890-1976.  
American artist. A founder of Dada in New York, he is known for his photographs, paintings, sculpture, films, and later experiments with surrealism.
Ray   (rī)   
Indian filmmaker whose works, especially the trilogy including The World of Apu (1958), offer a contemplative depiction of Bengali life.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

ray  (1)
"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. Martian heat ray weapon in H.G. Wells' "War of the Worlds," 1898).

ray  (2)
"type of fish related to sharks," 1323, from Fr. raie (13c.), from L. raia, of unknown origin.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: 1ray
Pronunciation: 'rA
Function: noun
: any of numerous elasmobranch fishes (order Hypotremata) having the body flatteneddorsoventrally, the eyes on the upper surface, and a much-reduced caudal region having typically a slender process often with venomous spines

Main Entry: 2ray
Function: noun
1 : one of the lines of light that appear to radiate from a bright object
2 : a beam of radiantenergy (as light) of small cross section
3 a : a stream of material particles traveling in the same line (as in radioactive phenomena) b : a single particle ofsuch a stream —rayed /'rAd/ adjective
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
Cite This Source

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
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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