different between character vs spirit

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 spirit, from Old French espirit (“spirit”), from Latin sp?ritus (“breath; spirit”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)peys- (“to blow, breathe”). Compare inspire, respire, transpire, all ultimately from Latin sp?r? (“I breathe, blow, respire”). Displaced native Middle English gast (“spirit”) (from Old English g?st (“spirit, ghost”)), whence modern English ghost. Doublet of sprite.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /?sp???t/
• (US) IPA^(key): /?spi??t/, /?sp???t/
• Rhymes: -???t
• Hyphenation: spir?it

Noun

spirit (countable and uncountable, plural spirits)

1. The soul of a person or other creature. What moves through experience into self-definition as souls purpose.
3. A supernatural being, often but not exclusively without physical form; ghost, fairy, angel.

   A wandering spirit haunts the island.

   • 1693, John Locke, Some Thoughts Concerning Education

     Whilst young, preserve his tender mind from all impressions and notions of spirits and goblins […] in the dark.
4. Enthusiasm.

5. The manner or style of something.
6. (usually in the plural) A volatile liquid, such as alcohol. The plural form spirits is a generic term for distilled alcoholic beverages.
7. Energy; ardour.
   • 1655, Thomas Fuller, The Church History of Britain

     "Write it then, quickly," replied Bede; and summoning all his spirits together, like the last blaze of a candle going out, he indited it, and expired.

8. One who is vivacious or lively; one who evinces great activity or peculiar characteristics of mind or temper.

   a ruling spirit; a schismatic spirit

   • 1697, John Dryden, Aeneid

     Such spirits as he desired to please, such would I choose for my judges.

9. Temper or disposition of mind; mental condition or disposition; intellectual or moral state; often in the plural.

   to be cheerful, or in good spirits; to be down-hearted, or in bad spirits

   • 1667, Robert South, Sermon VII

     God has […] made a spirit of building succeed a spirit of pulling down.

10. (obsolete) Air set in motion by breathing; breath; hence, sometimes, life itself.
11. (obsolete) A rough breathing; an aspirate, such as the letter h; also, a mark denoting aspiration.
    • 1640, Ben Jonson, The English Grammar

      Be it a letter or spirit, we have great use of it.

12. Intent; real meaning; opposed to the letter, or formal statement.

    the spirit of an enterprise, or of a document

13. (alchemy, obsolete) Any of the four substances: sulphur, sal ammoniac, quicksilver, and arsenic (or, according to some, orpiment).

    • the foure spirites and the bodyes seven

14. (dyeing) Stannic chloride.

Derived terms

Pages starting with “spirit”.

Translations

See also

• ghost
• soul

Verb

spirit (third-person singular simple present spirits, present participle spiriting, simple past and past participle spirited)

1. To carry off, especially in haste, secrecy, or mystery.
   • 1835, Nathaniel Parker Willis, Pencillings by the Way:

     I felt as if I had been spirited into some castle of felicity.

2. Sometimes followed by up: to animate with vigour; to excite; to encourage; to inspirit.

Derived terms

• spirit away
• spirit off

Anagrams

• Tripis, pitris

Indonesian

Etymology

From Dutch spirit, from English spirit, from Middle English spirit, from Old French espirit (“spirit”), from Latin sp?ritus (“breath; spirit”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)peys- (“to blow, breathe”). Doublet of spiritus.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [?spir?t??]
• Hyphenation: spi?rit

Noun

spirit (plural spirit-spirit, first-person possessive spiritku, second-person possessive spiritmu, third-person possessive spiritnya)

1. spirit:
   1. the soul of a person or other creature. What moves through experience into self-definition as souls purpose.

      Synonyms: arwah, atma, jiwa, hidup, kehidupan, nyawa, roh, sukma

   2. a supernatural being, often but not exclusively without physical form; ghost, fairy, angel.

      Synonyms: arwah, roh

   3. (figuratively) enthusiasm, energy; ardour.

      Synonyms: roh, semangat, spirit

Related terms

Further reading

• “spirit” in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia (KBBI) Daring, Jakarta: Badan Pengembangan dan Pembinaan Bahasa, Kementerian Pendidikan dan Kebudayaan Republik Indonesia, 2016.

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin spiritus. Compare also spiridu?.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?spirit/

Noun

spirit n (plural spirite)

1. spirit, ghost
2. essence, psyche
3. wit, genius
4. manner, style

Declension

Synonyms

• (spirit, ghost): duh

Related terms

• spiridu?

See also

• n?luc?, stafie, spectru, apari?ie, fantom?

Tok Pisin

Etymology

English spirit

Noun

spirit

1. spirit (physical form of God)