different between character vs ligature

English

Etymology

From Middle English caracter, from Old French caractere, from Latin character, from Ancient Greek ???????? (kharakt?r, “type, nature, character”), from ??????? (kharáss?, “I engrave”). Doublet of charakter.

Pronunciation

• (General American) IPA^(key): /?k??(?)kt?/, /?kæ?(?)kt?/
• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /?kæ??kt?/
• Hyphenation: char?ac?ter

Noun

character (countable and uncountable, plural characters)

1. (countable) A being involved in the action of a story.
2. (countable) A distinguishing feature; characteristic; trait; phene.

3. (uncountable, countable) A complex of traits marking a person, group, breed, or type.

   • A man of […] thoroughly subservient character

4. (uncountable) Strength of mind; resolution; independence; individuality; moral strength.

5. (countable) A unique or extraordinary individual; a person characterized by peculiar or notable traits, especially charisma.

6. (countable) A written or printed symbol, or letter.
   • 1669, William Holder, Elements of Speech

     It were much to be wished that there were throughout the world but one sort of character for each letter to express it to the eye.

7. (countable, dated) Style of writing or printing; handwriting; the particular form of letters used by a person or people.
8. (countable, dated) A secret cipher; a way of writing in code.
9. (countable, computing) One of the basic elements making up a text file or string: a code representing a printing character or a control character.
10. (countable, informal) A person or individual, especially one who is unknown or raises suspicions.

11. (countable, mathematics) A complex number representing an element of a finite Abelian group.
12. (countable) Quality, position, rank, or capacity; quality or conduct with respect to a certain office or duty.

13. (countable, dated) The estimate, individual or general, put upon a person or thing; reputation.

    • This subterraneous passage is much mended since Seneca gave so bad a character of it.

14. (countable, dated) A reference given to a servant, attesting to their behaviour, competence, etc.
15. (countable, obsolete) Personal appearance.

Usage notes

Character is sometimes used interchangeably with reputation, but the two words have different meanings; character describes the distinctive qualities of an individual or group while reputation describes the opinions held by others regarding an individual or group. Character is internal and authentic, while reputation is external and perceived.

Hyponyms

Derived terms

Related terms

Pages starting with “character”.

Translations

Verb

character (third-person singular simple present characters, present participle charactering, simple past and past participle charactered)

1. (obsolete) To write (using characters); to describe.

See also

• codepoint
• font
• glyph
• letter
• symbol
• rune
• pictogram

Latin

Etymology

From the Ancient Greek ???????? (kharakt?r).

Pronunciation

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /k?a?rak.ter/, [k?ä??äkt??r]
• (Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /ka?rak.ter/, [k????kt??r]

Noun

character m (genitive charact?ris); third declension

1. branding iron
2. brand (made by a branding iron)
3. characteristic, mark, character, style

Declension

Third-declension noun.

Descendants

• Hungarian: karakter
• Galician: caritel; ? carácter
• Irish: carachtar
• Italian: carattere
• Old French: caractere
  • ? English: character
  • French: caractère
• Polish: charakter
  • ? Russian: ????????? (xarákter)
• Portuguese: caractere, carácter
• Sicilian: caràttiri
• Spanish: carácter

References

• character in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• character in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré Latin-Français, Hachette
• character in Ramminger, Johann (accessed 16 July 2016) Neulateinische Wortliste: Ein Wörterbuch des Lateinischen von Petrarca bis 1700?^[1], pre-publication website, 2005-2016

Portuguese

Noun

character m (plural characteres)

1. Obsolete spelling of caráter (used in Portugal until September 1911 and died out in Brazil during the 1920s).

English

Etymology

From Middle English ligature, from Middle French ligature, from Late Latin lig?tura, from Latin lig?tus, past participle of lig?re (“to tie, bind”).

Pronunciation

• (US) IPA^(key): /?l???t??/

Noun

ligature (countable and uncountable, plural ligatures)

1. (uncountable) The act of tying or binding something.
2. (countable) A cord or similar thing used to tie something; especially the thread used in surgery to close a vessel or duct.
   • 2018: "She stalked the Golden State Killer until she died. Some think her work led to the suspect’s arrest." by Eli Rosenberg

     He hid shoelaces or rope under cushions to use as ligatures.

3. A thread or wire used to remove tumours, etc.
4. The state of being bound or stiffened; stiffness.

   the ligature of a joint

5. (countable, typography) A character that visually combines multiple letters, such as æ, œ, ß or ?; also logotype. Sometimes called a typographic ligature.
6. (countable, music) A group of notes played as a phrase, or the curved line that indicates such a phrase.
7. (music) A curve or line connecting notes; a slur.
8. (countable) A piece used to hold a reed to the mouthpiece on woodwind instruments.
9. Impotence caused by magic or charms.

Derived terms

• ligature point

Related terms

• liaison
• ligate
• ligation

Translations

Verb

ligature (third-person singular simple present ligatures, present participle ligaturing, simple past and past participle ligatured)

1. (surgery) To ligate; to tie.

French

Etymology

From Middle French ligature, from Late Latin lig?tura, from Latin lig?tus, past participle of lig? (“tie, bind”). Compare the popular Old French liüre.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /li.?a.ty?/

Noun

ligature f (plural ligatures)

1. a tie; the action of tying
2. a binding, notably in horticulture
3. ligature; a character that combines multiple letters; logotype.

Derived terms

• ligaturer

Related terms

• lier

Further reading

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

Anagrams

• lugerait
• régulait

Latin

Participle

lig?t?re

1. vocative masculine singular of lig?t?rus

Middle English

Etymology

Borrowed from Middle French ligature, itself borrowed from Late Latin lig?t?ra. Doublet of lyoure.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /li??a?tiu?r(?)/

Noun

ligature (plural ligatures)

1. bandage, dressing
2. (rare) ligament

Descendants

• English: ligature

References

• “lig?t?re, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.