different between power vs distinction
power
English
Alternative forms
- powre (obsolete)
Etymology
From Middle English poer, from Old French poeir, from Vulgar Latin *pot?re, from Latin possum, posse (“to be able”); see potent. Compare Modern French pouvoir. Displaced native Old English anweald.
Pronunciation
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /?pa??(?)/, /?pa?.?(?)/
- (with triphthong smoothing) IPA(key): /pa?/, /pa?/, /p??/
- (General American) IPA(key): /?pa?.?/, /?pa??/, [?p?a???], [?p?a???]
- Rhymes: -a?.?(?), -a??(?)
- Hyphenation: pow?er
Noun
power (countable and uncountable, plural powers)
- Ability to do or undergo something.
- 2018, Marilyn McCord Adams, Horrendous Evils and the Goodness of God (page 74)
- If it is spirits who have power to suffer, it seems they would also have active powers to think and will.
- 2018, Marilyn McCord Adams, Horrendous Evils and the Goodness of God (page 74)
- (social) Ability to coerce, influence or control.
- (countable) Ability to affect or influence.
- An incident which happened about this time will set the characters of these two lads more fairly before the discerning reader than is in the power of the longest dissertation.
- Thwackum, on the contrary, maintained that the human mind, since the fall, was nothing but a sink of iniquity, till purified and redeemed by grace. […] The favourite phrase of the former, was the natural beauty of virtue; that of the latter, was the divine power of grace.
- 1998, Eckhart Tolle, The Power of Now
- Past and future obviously have no reality of their own. Just as the moon has no light of its own, but can only reflect the light of the sun, so are past and future only pale reflections of the light, power, and reality of the eternal present.
- Control or coercion, particularly legal or political (jurisdiction).
- 1949, Eric Blair, aka George Orwell, Nineteen Eighty-Four
- The Party seeks power entirely for its own sake. We are not interested in the good of others; we are interested solely in power. Not wealth or luxury or long life or happiness: only power, pure power. [...] We know that no one ever seizes power with the intention of relinquishing it. Power is not a means, it is an end. One does not establish a dictatorship in order to safeguard a revolution; one makes the revolution in order to establish the dictatorship. The object of persecution is persecution. The object of torture is torture. The object of power is power.
- 2005, Columbia Law Review, April
- In the face of expanding federal power, California in particular struggled to maintain control over its Chinese population.
- 1949, Eric Blair, aka George Orwell, Nineteen Eighty-Four
- (metonymically, chiefly in the plural) The people in charge of legal or political power, the government.
- Synonym: powers that be
- (metonymically) An influential nation, company, or other such body.
- (countable) Ability to affect or influence.
- (physical, uncountable) Effectiveness.
- Physical force or strength.
- Electricity or a supply of electricity.
- A measure of the rate of doing work or transferring energy.
- The strength by which a lens or mirror magnifies an optical image.
- Physical force or strength.
- (colloquial, dated) A large amount or number.
- The threatning words of duke Robert comming at the last to king Henries eares, caused him foorthwith to conceiue verie sore displeasure against a power of men sent into Normandie.
- Any of the elementary forms or parts of machines: three primary (the lever, inclined plane, and pulley) and three secondary (the wheel-and-axle, wedge, and screw).
- the mechanical powers
- (physics, mechanics) A measure of the effectiveness that a force producing a physical effect has over time. If linear, the quotient of: (force multiplied by the displacement of or in an object) ÷ time. If rotational, the quotient of: (force multiplied by the angle of displacement) ÷ time.
- (mathematics)
- A product of equal factors (and generalizations of this notion): , read as " to the power of " or the like, is called a power and denotes the product , where appears times in the product; is called the base and the exponent.
- (set theory) Cardinality.
- (statistics) The probability that a statistical test will reject the null hypothesis when the alternative hypothesis is true.
- (biblical, in the plural) In Christian angelology, an intermediate level of angels, ranked above archangels, but exact position varies by classification scheme.
Usage notes
- Adjectives often used with "power": electric, nuclear, optical, mechanical, political, absolute, corporate, institutional, military, economic, solar, magic, magical, huge, physical, mental, intellectual, emotional, spiritual, sexual, seductive, coercive, erotic, natural, cultural, positive, negative, etc.
Synonyms
Antonyms
- impotence
- weakness
Hyponyms
Derived terms
Related terms
Descendants
- ? German: Power
- ? Welsh: p?er
Translations
Verb
power (third-person singular simple present powers, present participle powering, simple past and past participle powered)
- (transitive) To provide power for (a mechanical or electronic device).
- This CD player is powered by batteries.
- (transitive) To hit or kick something forcefully.
- To enable or provide the impetus for.
Derived terms
- power down
- power up
- empower
Translations
Adjective
power (comparative more power, superlative most power)
- (Singapore, colloquial) Impressive.
Further reading
- power at OneLook Dictionary Search
Anagrams
- powre
German
Etymology 1
From French pauvre, from Latin pauper.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /?po?v?r/, [?po?v?]
- Hyphenation: po?wer
Adjective
power (comparative powerer, superlative am powersten)
- (regional, informal) poor, miserable
Declension
Etymology 2
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /?pa???r/, [?pa???]
- Homophone: Power
Verb
power
- singular imperative of powern
- (colloquial) first-person singular present of powern
Further reading
- “power” in Duden online
power From the web:
- what powers the water cycle
- what powers does the president have
- what power supply do i need
- what powers does congress have
- what powers does the legislative branch have
- what powers does the executive branch have
- what powers does the judicial branch have
- what powers the sun
distinction
English
Etymology
From Middle English distinccioun, from Old French distinction (attested 12th century), from the Latin accusative distinctionem, action noun of distinguo (“I distinguish”). Used in English from the late 14th century.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /d??st??k??n/
Noun
distinction (countable and uncountable, plural distinctions)
- That which distinguishes; a single occurrence of a determining factor or feature, the fact of being divided; separation, discrimination.
- The act of distinguishing, discriminating; discrimination.
- Specifically, a feature that causes someone or something to stand out as being better; a mark of honour, rank, eminence or excellence; being distinguished.
- 2013, Daniel Taylor, Steven Gerrard goal against Poland ensures England will go to World Cup (in The Guardian, 15 October 2013)[2]
- Leighton Baines, playing with distinction again, sent over a left-wing cross with pace and accuracy. Welbeck, prominently involved all night, could not reach it but Rooney was directly behind him, flashing his header past Szczesny.
- 2013, Daniel Taylor, Steven Gerrard goal against Poland ensures England will go to World Cup (in The Guardian, 15 October 2013)[2]
Antonyms
- (that which distinguishes): confusion
Derived terms
- contradistinction
- distinction without a difference
Related terms
- distinct
- distinguish
- distinguished
- distinguishable
- distinguishness
Translations
French
Etymology
From Old French distinction (attested in the 12th century), from borrowed from the Latin accusative distinctionem, the action noun of distinguere (“distinguish”).
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /dis.t??k.sj??/
- Rhymes: -??
- Homophone: distinctions
Noun
distinction f (plural distinctions)
- distinction (difference, honour)
Related terms
- distinct
- distinguer
Further reading
- “distinction” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).
distinction From the web:
- what distinction was signified by the magna carta
- what distinction means
- what distinctions does russia enjoy
- what distinction did it earn in the 1920s
- what was achieved with the carta magna
- what does magna carta represent
- what were the main points of the magna carta
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