extract

[ verb ik-strakt or, especially for 5, ek-strakt; noun ek-strakt ]
See synonyms for extract on Thesaurus.com
verb (used with object)
  1. to get, pull, or draw out, usually with special effort, skill, or force: to extract a tooth.

  2. to deduce (a doctrine, principle, interpretation, etc.): He extracted a completely personal meaning from what was said.

  1. to derive or obtain (pleasure, comfort, etc.) from a particular source: He extracted satisfaction from the success of his sons.

  2. to take or copy out (matter), as from a book.

  3. to make excerpts from (a book, pamphlet, etc.).

  4. to extort (information, money, etc.): to extract a secret from someone.

  5. to separate or obtain (a juice, ingredient, etc.) from a mixture by pressure, distillation, treatment with solvents, or the like.

  6. Mathematics.

    • to determine (the root of a quantity that has a single root).

    • to determine (a root of a quantity that has multiple roots).

noun
  1. something extracted.

  2. a passage taken from a book, article, etc.; excerpt; quotation.

  1. a solution or preparation containing the active principles of a drug, plant juice, or the like; concentrated solution: vanilla extract.

  2. a solid, viscid, or liquid substance extracted from a plant, drug, or the like, containing its essence in concentrated form: beef extract.

Origin of extract

1
First recorded in 1475–1500; from Latin extractus (past participle of extrahere ). See ex-1, tract1

synonym study For extract

6. Extract, exact, extort, wrest imply using force to remove something. To extract is to draw forth something as by pulling, importuning, or the like: to extract a confession by torture. To exact is to impose a penalty, or to obtain by force or authority, something to which one lays claim: to exact payment. To extort is to wring something by intimidation or threats from an unwilling person: to extort money by threats of blackmail. To wrest is to take by force or violence in spite of active resistance: The courageous minority wrested power from their oppressors.

Other words for extract

Other words from extract

  • ex·tract·a·ble, ex·tract·i·ble, adjective
  • ex·tract·a·bil·i·ty, ex·tract·i·bil·i·ty, noun
  • non·ex·tract·a·ble, adjective
  • non·ex·tract·ed, adjective
  • non·ex·tract·i·ble, adjective
  • o·ver·ex·tract, verb (used with object)
  • pre·ex·tract, verb (used with object)
  • un·ex·tract·a·ble, adjective
  • un·ex·tract·ed, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

British Dictionary definitions for extract

extract

verb(ɪkˈstrækt) (tr)
  1. to withdraw, pull out, or uproot by force

  2. to remove or separate

  1. to derive (pleasure, information, etc) from some source or situation

  2. to deduce or develop (a doctrine, policy, etc)

  3. informal to extort (money, etc)

  4. to obtain (a substance) from a mixture or material by a chemical or physical process, such as digestion, distillation, the action of a solvent, or mechanical separation

  5. to cut out or copy out (an article, passage, quotation, etc) from a publication

  6. to determine the value of (the root of a number)

noun(ˈɛkstrækt)
  1. something extracted, such as a part or passage from a book, speech, etc

  2. a preparation containing the active principle or concentrated essence of a material: beef extract; yeast extract

  1. pharmacol a solution of plant or animal tissue containing the active principle

Origin of extract

1
C15: from Latin extractus drawn forth, from extrahere, from trahere to drag

usage For extract

Extract is sometimes wrongly used where extricate would be better: he will find it difficult extricating (not extracting) himself from this situation

Derived forms of extract

  • extractable, adjective
  • extractability, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012