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serial

6 dictionary results for: serial

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

se·ri·al

[seer-ee-uh

l] Pronunciation Key

–noun

1.	anything published, broadcast, etc., in short installments at regular intervals, as a novel appearing in successive issues of a magazine.

2.	Library Science. a publication in any medium issued in successive parts bearing numerical or chronological designation and intended to be continued indefinitely.

–adjective

3.	published in installments or successive parts: a serial story.

4.	pertaining to such publication.

5.	of, pertaining to, consisting of, or occurring in a series rather than simultaneously: Some societies condemn both polygamy and serial marriages.

6.	effecting or producing a series; sequential: The police think a serial killer is responsible for five homicides in this city last month.

Computers.

a.	of or pertaining to the apparent or actual performance of data-processing operations one at a time (distinguished from parallel).

b.	of or pertaining to the transmission or processing of each part of a whole in sequence, as each bit of a byte or each byte of a computer word (distinguished from parallel).

8.	Music. of, pertaining to, or composed in serial technique.

[Origin: 1835–45; < NL seriālis. See series, -al¹

]

—Related forms

se·ri·al·ly, adverb

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

se·ri·al (sîr'ē-əl) Pronunciation Key
adj.

Of, forming, or arranged in a series.
1. Published or produced in installments, as a novel or television drama.
2. Relating to such publication or production.
3. Of or relating to the sequential transmission of all the bits of a byte over one wire: a serial port; a serial printer.
4. Of or relating to the sequential performance of multiple operations: serial processing.
Responsible for a series of usually criminal acts over a period of time: a serial arsonist.
Music Relating to or based on a row of tones, especially the 12 pitches of the chromatic scale.
Computer Science
1. Of or relating to the sequential transmission of all the bits of a byte over one wire: a serial port; a serial printer.
2. Of or relating to the sequential performance of multiple operations: serial processing.

n. A literary or dramatic work published or produced in installments.

se'ri·al·ly adv.

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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

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Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
serial (adj.)

1840, from series (q.v.), popularized in ref. to Dickens' novels, published one part at a time (as opposed to all at once, in a book). Found to be a useful word and given wide application. The noun is attested from 1846. Serial number first recorded 1935. Serial killer is first attested 1981 (in relation to John Wayne Gacy and Ted Bundy), though serial had been used in connection with murders since the early 1960s.

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WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This

serial
adjective
1.	in regular succession without gaps; "serial concerts" [syn: consecutive]
2.	pertaining to or composed in serial technique; "serial music"
3.	pertaining to or occurring in or producing a series; "serial monogamy"; "serial killing"; "a serial killer"; "serial publication"
4.	of or relating to the sequential performance of multiple operations; "serial processing"
noun
1.	a serialized set of programs; "a comedy series"; "the Masterworks concert series"
2.	a periodical that appears at scheduled times [syn: series]

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Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Serial

Se"ri*al\, a. 1. Of or pertaining to a series; consisting of a series; appearing in successive parts or numbers; as, a serial work or publication. "Classification . . . may be more or less serial." --H. Spencer.

2. (Bot.) Of or pertaining to rows. --Gray.

Serial homology. (Biol.) See under Homology.

Serial symmetry. (Biol.) See under Symmetry.

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Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Serial

Se"ri*al\, n. A publication appearing in a series or succession of part; a tale, or other writing, published in successive numbers of a periodical.

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