Direct Di·rect" adjective (Political Science) Pertaining to, or effected immediately by, action of the people through their votes instead of through one or more representatives or delegates; as, direct nomination, direct legislation.

Direct action Direct action (Trade unions) See Syndicalism , below.

Direct current Direct current (Electricity) (a) A current flowing in one direction only; -- distinguished from alternating current . When steady and not pulsating a direct current is often called a continuous current . (b) A direct induced current , or momentary current of the same direction as the inducing current, produced by stopping or removing the latter; also, a similar current produced by removal of a magnet.

Direct nomination Direct nomination (Political Science) The nomination or designation of candidates for public office by direct popular vote rather than through the action of a convention or body of elected nominating representatives or delegates. The term is applied both to the nomination of candidates without any nominating convention, and, loosely, to the nomination effected, as in the case of candidates for president or senator of the United States, by the election of nominating representatives pledged or instructed to vote for certain candidates dssignated by popular vote.

Direct primary Direct primary (Political Science) A primary by which direct nominations of candidates for office are made.

Direct-acting Di·rect"-act`ing adjective (Machinery) Acting directly, as one part upon another, without the intervention of other working parts.

Direct-acting steam engine , one in which motion is transmitted to the crank without the intervention of a beam or lever; -- also called direct-action steam engine . -- Direct-acting steam pump , one in which the steam piston rod is directly connected with the pump rod; -- also called direct-action steam pump .

Direct-coupled Di·rect"-cou"pled adjective Coupled without intermediate connections, as an engine and a dynamo.

Direct-coupled antenna (Wireless Teleg.) , an antenna connected electrically with one point of a closed oscillation circuit in syntony with it and earthed.

Directer Di·rect"er noun One who directs; a director.

Directer plane (Geom.) , the plane to which all right-lined elements in a warped surface are parallel.

Direction Di·rec"tion noun [ Latin directio : confer French direction .] 1. The act of directing, of aiming, regulating, guiding, or ordering; guidance; management; superintendence; administration; as, the direction o... public affairs or of a bank.

I do commit his youth
To your direction .

Shak.

All nature is but art, unknown to thee;
ll chance, direction , which thou canst not see.

Pope.

2. That which is imposed by directing; a guiding or authoritative instruction; prescription; order; command; as, he grave directions to the servants.

The princes digged the well . . . by the direction of the law giver.

Numb. xxi. 18.

3. The name and residence of a person to whom any thing is sent, written upon the thing sent; superscription; address; as, the direction of a letter.

4. The line or course upon which anything is moving or aimed to move, or in which anything is lying or pointing; aim; line or point of tendency; direct line or course; as, the ship sailed in a southeasterly direction .

5. The body of managers of a corporation or enterprise; board of directors.

6. (Gun.) The pointing of a piece with reference to an imaginary vertical axis; -- distinguished from elevation . The direction is given when the plane of sight passes through the object. Wilhelm.

Syn. -- Administration; guidance; management; superintendence; oversight; government; order; command; guide; clew. Direction , Control , Command , Order . These words, as here compared, have reference to the exercise of power over the actions of others. Control is negative, denoting power to restrain; command is positive, implying a right to enforce obedience; directions are commands containing instructions how to act. Order conveys more prominently the idea of authority than the word direction . A shipmaster has the command of his vessel; he gives orders or directions to the seamen as to the mode of sailing it; and exercises a due control over the passengers.

Directive Di·rect"ive adjective [ Late Latin directivus : confer French directif .] 1. Having power to direct; tending to direct, guide, or govern; showing the way. Hooker.

The precepts directive of our practice in relation to God.

Barrow.

2. Able to be directed; manageable. [ Obsolete]

Swords and bows
Directive by the limbs.

Shak.

Directly Di·rect"ly adverb 1. In a direct manner; in a straight line or course. "To run directly on." Shak.

Indirectly and directly too
Thou hast contrived against the very life
Of the defendant.

Shak.

2. In a straightforward way; without anything intervening; not by secondary, but by direct, means.

3. Without circumlocution or ambiguity; absolutely; in express terms.

No man hath hitherto been so impious as plainly and directly to condemn prayer.

Hooker.

4. Exactly; just.

Stand you directly in Antonius' way.

Shak.

5. Straightforwardly; honestly.

I have dealt most directly in thy affair.

Shak.

6. Manifestly; openly. [ Obsolete]

Desdemona is directly in love with him.

Shak.

7. Straightway; next in order; without delay; immediately. "Will she go now to bed?' ... Directly . ' " Shak.

8. Immediately after; as soon as.

Directly he stopped, the coffin was removed.

Dickens.

» This use of the word is common in England, especially in colloquial speech, but it can hardly be regarded as a well-sanctioned or desirable use.

Directly proportional (Math.) , proportional in the order of the terms; increasing or decreasing together, and with a constant ratio; -- opposed to inversely proportional .

Syn. -- Immediately; forthwith; straightway; instantly; instantaneously; soon; promptly; openly; expressly. -- Directly , Immediately , Instantly , Instantaneously . Directly denotes, without any delay or diversion of attention; immediately implies, without any interposition of other occupation; instantly implies, without any intervention of time. Hence, "I will do it directly ," means, "I will go straightway about it." "I will do it immediately ," means, "I will do it as the very next thing." "I will do it instantly ," allows not a particle of delay. Instantaneously , like instantly , marks an interval too small to be appreciable, but commonly relates to physical causes; as, the powder touched by fire instantaneously exploded.

Directness Di·rect"ness noun The quality of being direct; straightness; straightforwardness; immediateness.

Directoire style Di`rec`toire" style (Dressmaking) A style of dress prevalent at the time of the French Directory, characterized by great extravagance of design and imitating the Greek and Roman costumes.

Director Di·rect"or noun [ Confer French directeur .] 1. One who, or that which, directs; one who regulates, guides, or orders; a manager or superintendent.

In all affairs thou sole director .

Swift.

2. One of a body of persons appointed to manage the affairs of a company or corporation; as, the directors of a bank, insurance company, or railroad company.

What made directors cheat in South-Sea year?

Pope.

3. (Mech.) A part of a machine or instrument which directs its motion or action.

4. (Surg.) A slender grooved instrument upon which a knife is made to slide when it is wished to limit the extent of motion of the latter, or prevent its injuring the parts beneath.

Directorate Di·rect"o·rate noun [ Confer French directorat .] The office of director; also, a body of directors taken jointly.

Directorial Di·rec·to"ri·al adjective [ Confer French directorial .] 1. Having the quality of a director, or authoritative guide; directive.

2. Pertaining to: director or directory; specifically, relating to the Directory of France under the first republic. See Directory , 3.

Whoever goes to the directorial presence under this passport.

Burke.

Directorship Di·rect"or·ship noun The condition or office of a director; directorate.

Directory Di·rect"o·ry adjective [ Latin directorius .] Containing directions; enjoining; instructing; directorial.

Directory Di·rect"o·ry noun ; plural Directories 1. A collection or body of directions, rules, or ordinances; esp., a book of directions for the conduct of worship; as, the Directory used by the nonconformists instead of the Prayer Book.

2. A book containing the names and residences of the inhabitants of any place, or of classes of them; an address book; as, a business directory .

3. [ Confer French directoire .] A body of directors; board of management; especially, a committee which held executive power in France under the first republic.

4. Direction; guide. [ R.] Whitlock.

Directress Di·rect"ress noun A woman who directs. Bp. Hurd.

Directrix Di·rect"rix noun ; plural English Directrixes Latin Directrices 1. A directress. [ R.] Jer. Taylor.

2. (Geom.) (a) A line along which a point in another line moves, or which in any way governs the motion of the point and determines the position of the curve generated by it; the line along which the generatrix moves in generating a surface. (b) A straight line so situated with respect to a conic section that the distance of any point of the curve from it has a constant ratio to the distance of the same point from the focus.

Direful Dire"ful adjective [ Dire + - ful .] Dire; dreadful; terrible; calamitous; woeful; as, a direful fiend; a direful day. -- Dire"ful*ly , adverb -- Dire"ful*ness , noun

Direly Dire"ly adverb In a dire manner. Drayton.

Dirempt Di·rempt" adjective [ Latin diremptus , past participle of dirimere to take apart, separate; di- = dis- + emere to buy, orig., to take.] Divided; separated. [ Obsolete] Stow.

Dirempt Di·rempt" transitive verb To separate by force; to tear apart. [ Obsolete] Holinshed.

Diremption Di·remp"tion noun [ Latin diremptio .] A tearing apart; violent separation. [ Obsolete] Bp. Hall.

Direness Dire"ness noun [ Dire- + - ness .] Terribleness; horror; woefulness. Shak.

Direption Di·rep"tion noun [ Latin direptio , from diripere to tear asunder, plunder; di- = dis- + rapere to seize and carry off.] The act of plundering, despoiling, or snatching away. [ R.] Speed.

Direptitious Di·rep·ti"tious adjective Characterized by direption. [ R.] Encyc. Dict.

Direptitiously Di·rep·ti"tious·ly adverb With plundering violence; by violent injustice. [ R.] Strype.

Dirge Dirge noun [ Contraction of Lat. dirige , direct thou (imperative of dirigere ), the first word of a funeral hymn (Lat. transl. of Psalm v. 8) beginning, " Dirige , Domine , in conspectu tuo vitam meam ." See Direct , adjective , and confer Dirige .] A piece of music of a mournful character, to accompany funeral rites; a funeral hymn.

The raven croaked, and hollow shrieks of owls
Sung dirges at her funeral.

Ford.

Dirgeful Dirge"ful adjective Funereal; moaning.

Soothed sadly by the dirgeful wind.

Coleridge.

Dirige Dir"i·ge noun [ Latin See Dirge .] A service for the dead, in the Roman Catholic Church, being the first antiphon of Matins for the dead, of which Dirige is the first word; a dirge.

Evensongs and placebo and dirige .

Wyclif.

Resort, I pray you, unto my sepulture
To sing my dirige with great devotion.

Lamentation of Mary Magdalene.

Dirigent Dir"i·gent adjective [ Latin dirigens , present participle of dirigere . See Direct , adjective ] Directing. Baxter.

Dirigent Dir"i·gent noun (Geom.) The line of motion along which a describent line or surface is carried in the genesis of any plane or solid figure; a directrix. Hutton.

Dirigible Dir"i·gi·ble adjective Capable of being directed; steerable; as, a dirigible balloon.

Diriment Dir"i·ment adjective [ Latin dirimens , present participle of dirimere . See Dirempt .] (Law) Absolute.

Diriment impediment (R. C. Ch.) , an impediment that nullifies marriage.

Dirk Dirk noun [ Ir. duirc .] A kind of dagger or poniard; -- formerly much used by the Scottish Highlander.

Dirk knife , a clasp knife having a large, dirklike blade.

Dirk Dirk transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Dirked ; present participle & verbal noun Dirking .] To stab with a dirk. Sir W. Scott.

Dirk Dirk adjective [ See Dark , adjective ] Dark. [ Obsolete] Chaucer.

Dirk Dirk transitive verb To darken. [ Obsolete] Spenser.

Dirkness Dirk"ness noun Darkness. [ Obsolete] Chaucer.

Dirl Dirl intransitive verb & t. [ Confer Drill , Thrill .] To thrill; to vibrate; to penetrate. [ Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.

Dirt Dirt noun [ Middle English drit ; kin to Icelandic drit excrement, drīta to dung, OD. drijten to dung, Anglo-Saxon gedrītan .] 1. Any foul of filthy substance, as excrement, mud, dust, etc.; whatever, adhering to anything, renders it foul or unclean; earth; as, a wagonload of dirt .

Whose waters cast up mire and dirt .

Is. lvii. 20.

2. Meanness; sordidness.

Honors . . . thrown away upon dirt and infamy.

Melmoth.

3. In placer mining, earth, gravel, etc., before washing.

Dirt bed (Geom.) , a layer of clayey earth forming a stratum in a geological formation. Dirt beds are common among the coal measures. -- Dirt eating . (a) The use of certain kinds of clay for food, existing among some tribes of Indians; geophagism. Humboldt. (b) (Medicine) Same as Chthonophagia . -- Dirt pie , clay or mud molded by children in imitation of pastry. Otway (1684). -- To eat dirt , to submit in a meanly humble manner to insults; to eat humble pie.

Dirt Dirt transitive verb To make foul of filthy; to dirty. Swift.

Dirtily Dirt"i·ly adverb In a dirty manner; foully; nastily; filthily; meanly; sordidly.

Dirtiness Dirt"i·ness noun The state of being dirty; filthiness; foulness; nastiness; baseness; sordidness.

Dirty Dirt"y adjective [ Compar. Dirtier ; superl. Dirtiest .] 1. Defiled with dirt; foul; nasty; filthy; not clean or pure; serving to defile; as, dirty hands; dirty water; a dirty white. Spenser.

2. Sullied; clouded; -- applied to color. Locke.

3. Sordid; base; groveling; as, a dirty fellow.

The creature's at his dirty work again.

Pope.

4. Sleety; gusty; stormy; as, dirty weather.

Storms of wind, clouds of dust, an angry, dirty sea.

M. Arnold.

Syn. -- Nasty; filthy; foul. See Nasty .

Dirty Dirt"y transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Dirtied ; present participle & verbal noun Dirtying .] 1. To foul; to make filthy; to soil; as, to dirty the clothes or hands.

2. To tarnish; to sully; to scandalize; -- said of reputation, character, etc.

Diruption Di·rup"tion noun [ Latin diruptio , from dirumpere . See Disrupt , adjective ] Disruption.

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