different between address vs direct

English

Etymology

From Middle English adressen (“to raise erect, adorn”), from Old French adrecier (“to straighten, address”) (modern French adresser), from a- (from Latin ad (“to”)) + drecier (modern French dresser (“to straighten, arrange”)) < Vulgar Latin *d?recti?, from Latin d?rectus (“straight or right”), from the verb d?rig?, itself from reg? (“to govern, to rule”). Cognate with Spanish aderezar (“to garnish; dress (food); to add spices”).

Pronunciation

• Noun:
  • enPR: ?dr?s?, ??dr?s, IPA^(key): /??d??s/, /?æd??s/
• Verb:
  • (Received Pronunciation) enPR: ?dr?s?, IPA^(key): /??d??s/
  • (General American, Canada) enPR: ?dr?s?, ?dr?s?, IPA^(key): /??d??s/, /æ?d??s/
  • (General American, rare) enPR: ??dr?s, IPA^(key): /?æd??s/
• Rhymes: -?s
• Hyphenation: ad?dress

Noun

address (plural addresses)

1. Direction.
   1. (obsolete) Guidance; help. [15th–17th c.]
   2. (chiefly in the plural, now archaic) A polite approach made to another person, especially of a romantic nature; an amorous advance. [from 16th c.]
      • 1723, Richard Steele, The Lover and Reader, page 115:

        [H]e was thus agreeable, and I neither insensible of his Perfections, nor displeased at his Addresses to me […] .

   3. A manner of speaking or writing to another; language, style. [from 16th c.]

   4. A formal approach to a sovereign, especially an official appeal or petition; later (specifically) a response given by each of the Houses of Parliament to the sovereign's speech at the opening of Parliament. [from 17th c.]
   5. An act of addressing oneself to a person or group; a discourse or speech, or a record of this. [from 17th c.]
      • 1887, Arthur Conan Doyle, A Study in Scarlet, VII:

        Mr. Gregson, who had listened to this address with considerable impatience, could contain himself no longer.

   6. A description of the location of a property, usually with at least a street name and number, name of a town, and now also a postal code; such a description as superscribed for direction on an envelope or letter. [from 17th c.]

   7. (by extension) The property itself. [from 19th c.]

   8. (computing) A number identifying a specific storage location in computer memory; a string of characters identifying a location on the internet or other network; sometimes (specifically) an e-mail address. [from 20th c.]

2. Preparation.
   1. (now rare) Preparedness for some task; resourcefulness; skill, ability. [from 16th c.]
      • 1789, John Moore, Zeluco, Valancourt 2008, p. 129:

        The warmth of Father Pedro's constitution had formerly drawn him into some scrapes from which it required all his address to disengage himself, and rendered him exceedingly cautious ever after.

      • 1813, "Customs, Manners, and present Appearance of Constantinople", The New Annual Register, or General Repository of History, Politics, and Literature for the year 1812, p. 179 (Google preview):

        At their turning-lathes, they employ their toes to guide the chisel; and, in these pedipulations, shew to Europeans a diverting degree of address.

   2. (obsolete) The act of getting ready; preparation. [17th–18th c.]
      • 1671, John Milton, Samson Agonistes:

        But now again she makes address to speak.

   3. (golf) The act of bringing the head of the club up to the ball in preparation for swinging. [from 19th c.]

Synonyms

• adroitness
• discourse
• harangue
• ingenuity
• lecture
• oration
• petition
• readiness
• speech
• tact

Derived terms

• subaddress

Descendants

• Tok Pisin: adres
• ? Bole: adireshi
• ? Cebuano: adres
• ? Sinhalese: ??????? (æ?ras)
• ? Tagalog: adres

Translations

Verb

address (third-person singular simple present addresses, present participle addressing, simple past and past participle addressed or (obsolete) addrest)

1. (intransitive, obsolete) To prepare oneself.
2. (intransitive, obsolete) To direct speech.

   • Young Turnus to the Beauteous Maid addre?s’d.

3. (transitive, obsolete) To aim; to direct.
   • 1590, Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene, Book I Canto X:

     And this good knight his way with me addrest.

4. (transitive, obsolete) To prepare or make ready.
   • Then Turnus, from his chariot, leaping light, Addre?s’d him?elf on foot to ?ingle fight.

   • 1649, Jeremy Taylor, The Great Exemplar of Sanctity and Holy Life According to the Christian Institution

     The five foolish virgins addressed themselves at the noise of the bridegroom's coming.

5. (transitive, reflexive) To prepare oneself; to apply one's skill or energies (to some object); to betake.
   • 1851, Herman Melville, Moby Dick, chapter 3

     […] good heavens! dumplings for supper! One young fellow in a green box coat, addressed himself to these dumplings in a most direful manner.

6. (reflexive) To direct one’s remarks (to someone).
   • 1701, Thomas Brown, Laconics, or New Maxims of State and Conversation, London: Thomas Hodgson, section 76, p. 103,^[1]

     In the Reign of King Charles the Second, a certain Worthy Divine at Whitehall, thus Address’d himself to the Auditory at the conclusion of his Sermon.

   • 1813, Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice, Volume I, Chapter 11,^[2]

     He addressed himself directly to Miss Bennet, with a polite congratulation […]

   • 1876, Henry Martyn Robert, Robert’s Rules of Order, Chicago: S.C. Griggs & Co., p. 66, Article V, Section 34,^[3]

     When any member is about to speak in debate, he shall rise and respectfully address himself to “Mr. Chairman.”

7. (transitive, archaic) To clothe or array; to dress.

   Synonyms: beclothe, dight, put on; see also Thesaurus:clothe
8. (Discuss⁽⁺⁾ this sense) (transitive) To direct, as words (to anyone or anything); to make, as a speech, petition, etc. (to any audience).

   • though the young Heroe had addre?s’d his Prayers to him for his a??i?tance

9. (transitive) To direct speech to; to make a communication to, whether spoken or written; to apply to by words, as by a speech, petition, etc., to speak to.

   • Are not your orders to address the senate?

   • 1724, Jonathan Swift, Drapier's Letters, 3

     The representatives of the nation in parliament, and the privy council, address the king

   • 1989, Grant Naylor, Red Dwarf: Infinity Welcomes Careful Drivers

     Rimmer paused for no discernible reason, then yelled, equally inexplicably: 'Shut up!', wheeled round 180º, and appeared to be addressing a dartboard.
10. (transitive) To direct in writing, as a letter; to superscribe, or to direct and transmit.

11. (transitive) To make suit to as a lover; to court; to woo.

    Synonyms: romance, put the moves on; see also Thesaurus:woo

12. (transitive) To consign or entrust to the care of another, as agent or factor.

13. (transitive) To address oneself to; to prepare oneself for; to apply oneself to; to direct one's speech, discourse or efforts to.
    • 1990, Stephen King, The Moving Finger

      He stepped away from the sink, put up the toilet ring (Vi complained bitterly if he forgot to put it down when he was through, but never seemed to feel any pressing need to put it back up when she was), and addressed the John.
14. (transitive, formal) To direct attention towards a problem or obstacle, in an attempt to resolve it.
15. (transitive, computing) To refer to a location in computer memory.
16. (golf, transitive) To get ready to hit (the ball on the tee).

Usage notes

• The intransitive uses can be understood as omission of the reflexive pronoun.

Derived terms

• addressee
• addresser

Translations

Scots

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?adr?s/

Noun

address (plural addresses)

1. an address

Verb

address (third-person singular present addresses, present participle addressin, past addresst, past participle addresst)

1. to address

References

• Eagle, Andy, ed. (2016) The Online Scots Dictionary, Scots Online.

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin d?rectus, perfect passive participle of d?rig? (“straighten, direct”), from dis- (“asunder, in pieces, apart, in two”) + reg? (“make straight, rule”). Compare dress.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /d(a)????kt/, /d????kt/, /da??????kt/
• Rhymes: -?kt
• Hyphenation: di?rect

Adjective

direct (comparative more direct, superlative most direct)

1. Proceeding without deviation or interruption.
2. Straight; not crooked, oblique, or circuitous; leading by the short or shortest way to a point or end.

3. Straightforward; sincere.
4. Immediate; express; plain; unambiguous.

   • He nowhere, that I know, says it in direct words.

   • 1827, Henry Hallam, The Constitutional History of England

     a direct and avowed interference with elections

5. In the line of descent; not collateral.

6. (astronomy) In the direction of the general planetary motion, or from west to east; in the order of the signs; not retrograde; said of the motion of a celestial body.
7. (political science) Pertaining to, or effected immediately by, action of the people through their votes instead of through one or more representatives or delegates.

8. (aviation, travel) having a single flight number.

Synonyms

• (proceeding uninterrupted): immediate
• (express, plain, unambiguous): explicit, patent, univocal; see also Thesaurus:explicit

Antonyms

• indirect

Derived terms

Translations

Adverb

direct (comparative more direct, superlative most direct)

1. Directly.
   • 2009, Hilary Mantel, Wolf Hall, Fourth Estate 2010, p. 346:

     Presumably Mary is to carry messages that she, Anne, is too delicate to convey direct.

Verb

direct (third-person singular simple present directs, present participle directing, simple past and past participle directed)

1. To manage, control, steer.

   to direct the affairs of a nation or the movements of an army

2. To aim (something) at (something else).

   They directed their fire towards the men on the wall.

   He directed his question to the room in general.

3. To point out or show to (somebody) the right course or way; to guide, as by pointing out the way.

   He directed me to the left-hand road.

   • 1882, John Lubbock, Flowers, Fruits and Leaves

     the next points to which I will direct your attention

4. To point out to with authority; to instruct as a superior; to order.

   She directed them to leave immediately.
5. (dated) To put a direction or address upon; to mark with the name and residence of the person to whom anything is sent.

   to direct a letter

Derived terms

• co-direct, codirect
• misdirect
• redirect

Related terms

Translations

Anagrams

• Credit, credit, triced

Dutch

Etymology

Borrowed from Middle French direct, from Latin d?r?ctus.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /di?r?kt/
• Hyphenation: di?rect
• Rhymes: -?kt

Adjective

direct (comparative directer, superlative directst)

1. direct, immediate
2. direct, blunt, frank

Inflection

Adverb

direct

1. immediately

Synonyms

• onmiddellijk
• meteen
• rechtstreeks

Derived terms

• drek

Descendants

• Afrikaans: direk
• ? Papiamentu: dirèkt

French

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /di.??kt/
• Homophones: directe, directes, directs

Etymology 1

Borrowed from Latin d?rectus. Doublet of droit, which was inherited.

Adjective

direct (feminine singular directe, masculine plural directs, feminine plural directes)

1. direct

Etymology 2

From directement.

Adverb

direct

1. (colloquial) directly

   Si t'as pas envie d'y aller, dis-le direct.

   • 'If you don't want to go, say it straight up.'

Derived terms

Related terms

• diriger
• directeur
• direction

See also

• droit

Anagrams

• crédit
• décrit
• dicter

Further reading

• “direct” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

Norman

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin d?rectus, perfect passive participle of d?rig?, d?rigere (“straighten, direct”). Compare the inherited drait, drouait.

Adjective

direct m

1. (Jersey) direct

Derived terms

• directément (“directly”)

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French direct, Latin directus. Compare the inherited doublet drept.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /di?rekt/

Adjective

direct m or n (feminine singular direct?, masculine plural direc?i, feminine and neuter plural directe)

1. direct
2. head-on

Declension

Adverb

direct

1. directly
2. straight