Word Origin Atlas

Exact historical dictionary sense

Direct in Webster's 1913 dictionary

The 1913 record labels direct as adjective. Its source-bounded etymology and selected historical definition appear below.

WEBSTER 1913adjective
Direct

[L. directus, p. p. of dirigere to direct: cf. F. direct. See Dress, and cf. Dirge.]

Cross-verified historical sense
The source text may be outdated. The page preserves that historical boundary.
Cross-verified 1913 record
Headworddirect
Part of speechadjective
Historical etymology[L. directus, p. p. of dirigere to direct: cf. F. direct. See Dress, and cf. Dirge.]
Selected historical definitionStraight; not crooked, oblique, or circuitous; leading by the short or shortest way to a point or end; as, a direct line; direct means.
Signed record IDwebster1913-direct-adjective-c18e32136ae7
Source locatorCIDE.D, paragraph 7543; Gutenberg eBook 662
Edition-scoped answerNot earliest-attestation proofNot modern consensus
Independent historical textProject Gutenberg section 662Signed structural record sourceGNU GCIDE 0.54 archive
Quick answer

In Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913), "direct" is labeled adjective. Its etymology is recorded as: "[L. directus, p. p. of dirigere to direct: cf. F. direct. See Dress, and cf. Dirge.]" The selected historical definition says: "Straight; not crooked, oblique, or circuitous; leading by the short or shortest way to a point or end; as, a direct line; direct means."

Project Gutenberg Webster 1913 plus signed GNU GCIDE 0.54 Exact cross-verified historical record reviewed 2026-10-04

What this answer proves

One named sense in one historical dictionary edition.

The answer reports the selected headword, part of speech, etymology, definition, and source locator as transcribed in the cross-verified 1913 record.

Evidence boundaryIt does not establish the earliest attestation or a complete borrowing chain.It does not claim current scholarly consensus or a modern dictionary definition.Historical dictionary text may be obsolete, incomplete, inaccurate, or offensive by modern standards.

More released D records

Every card owns a different source record and historical sense.

verb

Date

[Cf. F. dater. See 2d Date.]

Webster 1913 exact recordnoun

Design

[Cf. dessein, dessin.]

Webster 1913 exact recordnoun

District

[LL. districtus district, fr. L. districtus, p. p. of distringere: cf. F. district. See Distrain.]

Webster 1913 exact recordverb

Drop

[OE. droppen, AS. dropan, v. i. See Drop, n.]

Webster 1913 exact recordadjective

Double

[OE. doble, duble, double, OF. doble, duble, double, F. double, fr. L. duplus, fr. the root of duo two, and perh. that of plenus full; akin to Gr. diplo`os double. See Two, and Full, and cf. Diploma, Duple.]

Webster 1913 exact record

Browse released D records - browse all historical records.