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visual

 - 5 dictionary results

vis⋅u⋅al

  [vizh-oo-uhl]
Use visual in a Sentence
–adjective
1. of or pertaining to seeing or sight: a visual image.
2. used in seeing: the visual sense.
3. optical.
4. perceptible by the sense of sight; visible: a visual beauty.
5. perceptible by the mind; of the nature of a mental vision: a visual impression captured in a line of verse.
–noun
6. Usually, visuals.
a. the picture elements, as distinguished from the sound elements, in films, television, etc.
b. photographs, slides, films, charts, or other visual materials, esp. as used for illustration or promotion. Compare audio, video.
7. a rough, preliminary sketch of an advertising layout, showing possible arrangements of material. Compare comprehensive (def. 5).
8. any item or element depending on the sense of sight.
Origin:
1375–1425; late ME < LL vīsuālis, equiv. to vīsu(s) sight (vid(ēre) to see + -tus suffix of v. action, with dt > s) + -ālis -al 1
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To visual
vi·su·al   (vĭzh'ōō-əl)   
adj.  

  1. Of or relating to the sense of sight: a visual organ; visual receptors on the retina.

  2. Seen or able to be seen by the eye; visible: a visual presentation; a design with a dramatic visual effect.

  3. Optical.

  4. Done, maintained, or executed by sight only: visual navigation.

  5. Having the nature of or producing an image in the mind: a visual memory of the scene.

  6. Of or relating to a method of instruction involving sight.

n.  A picture, chart, or other presentation that appeals to the sense of sight, used in promotion or for illustration or narration. Often used in the plural: an ad campaign with striking visuals; trying to capture a poem in a cinematic visual.

[Middle English, from Late Latin vīsuālis, from Latin vīsus, sight, from past participle of vidēre, to see; see vision.]
vi'su·al·ly adv., vi'su·al·ness, vi'su·al'i·ty (-āl'ĭ-tē) 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

visual  (adj.)
1412, "coming from the eye or sight" (as a beam of light), from L.L. visualis "of sight," from L. visus "sight," from visus, pp. of videre "to see" (see vision). Meaning "relating to vision" is first attested 1603. The noun meaning "photographic film or other visual display" is first recorded 1951. Visualize (1817) is first attested in, and perhaps was coined by, Coleridge.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: vi·su·al
Pronunciation: 'vizh-(&-)w&l, 'vizh-&l
Function: adjective
1 : of, relating to, or used in vision<visual organs>
2 : attained or maintained by sight <visual impressions> —vi·su·al·ly /'vizh-(&-)w&-lE,'vizh-(&-)lE/ adverb
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

visual vi·su·al (vĭzh'&oomacr;-əl)
adj.

  1. Of or relating to the sense of sight.

  2. Seen or able to be seen by the eye; visible.

  3. Optical.

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