control
Americanverb (used with object)
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to exercise restraint or direction over; dominate: command.
The car is difficult to control at high speeds.
That zone is controlled by enemy troops.
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to hold in check; curb.
to control a horse;
to control one's emotions.
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to test or verify (a scientific experiment) by a parallel experiment or other standard of comparison.
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to eliminate or prevent the flourishing or spread of.
to control a forest fire.
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Biology. (of an organism) to initiate an internal response to external stimuli.
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Obsolete. to check or regulate (transactions), originally by means of a duplicate register.
noun
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the act or power of controlling; regulation; domination or command.
Who's in control here?
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the situation of being under the regulation, domination, or command of another.
The car is out of control.
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check or restraint.
Her anger is under control.
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a legal or official means of regulation or restraint.
to institute wage and price controls.
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Statistics. control variable.
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a person who acts as a check; controller.
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a device for regulating and guiding a machine, as a motor or airplane.
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controls, a coordinated arrangement of such devices.
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prevention of the flourishing or spread of something undesirable.
rodent control.
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Biology. an organism’s ability to initiate an internal response to external stimuli (regulation ).
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Baseball. the ability of a pitcher to throw the ball into the strike zone consistently.
The rookie pitcher has great power but no control.
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Philately. any device printed on a postage or revenue stamp to authenticate it as a government issue or to identify it for bookkeeping purposes.
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a spiritual agency believed to assist a medium at a séance.
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the supervisor to whom an espionage agent reports when in the field.
verb phrase
verb
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to command, direct, or rule
to control a country
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to check, limit, curb, or regulate; restrain
to control one's emotions
to control a fire
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to regulate or operate (a machine)
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to verify (a scientific experiment) by conducting a parallel experiment in which the variable being investigated is held constant or is compared with a standard
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to regulate (financial affairs)
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to examine and verify (financial accounts)
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to restrict or regulate the authorized supply of (certain substances, such as drugs)
noun
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power to direct or determine
under control
out of control
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a means of regulation or restraint; curb; check
a frontier control
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(often plural) a device or mechanism for operating a car, aircraft, etc
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a standard of comparison used in a statistical analysis or scientific experiment
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a device that regulates the operation of a machine. A dynamic control is one that incorporates a governor so that it responds to the output of the machine it regulates
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( as modifier )
control panel
control room
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spiritualism an agency believed to assist the medium in a séance
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Also called: control mark. a letter, or letter and number, printed on a sheet of postage stamps, indicating authenticity, date, and series of issue
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one of a number of checkpoints on a car rally, orienteering course, etc, where competitors check in and their time, performance, etc, is recorded
Usage
What does control mean? To control is to dominate or command something or someone, as in Tomas showed excellent control of his hand several weeks after his surgery.As a noun, control can refer to the act of controlling, as in I can’t stand it—my parents have total control over my life!To control is also to restrain or keep in check, as in Toddlers are not known for control over their emotions.Control can also refer to keeping something in check. When you keep your emotions under control, you still feel them but you don’t let them overwhelm you.To control can also mean to eliminate the spread of something, such as with a fire or an illness.In statistics, to control for means to compare only like data to reduce the number of variables in the comparison.Example: Who has control of the lights for tonight’s show?
Other Word Forms
- controllability noun
- controllable adjective
- controllableness noun
- controllably adverb
- controlless adjective
- controllingly adverb
- noncontrollable adjective
- noncontrollably adverb
- noncontrolled adjective
- noncontrolling adjective
- overcontrol verb (used with object)
- precontrol noun
- quasi-controlled adjective
- quasi-controlling adjective
- subcontrol verb (used with object)
- supercontrol noun
- uncontrolled adjective
- uncontrolling adjective
- well-controlled adjective
Etymology
Origin of control
First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English co(u)ntrollen (verb), from Anglo-French contreroller “to keep a duplicate account or roll,” derivative of contrerolle (noun); counter-, roll
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Animal control officers from Pasadena Humane confirmed that a bear was living under an Altadena house Sunday but could not be sure if the latest bear squatter was the same bruin from the earlier incident.
From Los Angeles Times
“It would only be sufficient for international law purposes if Machado’s government were able to exercise effective control over the territory and the government institutions,” which isn’t the case, says Anderson.
After the Alaska Airlines incident, Boeing fortified its quality control and manufacturing operations under close scrutiny by the US Federal Aviation Administration.
From Barron's
The ministry, responding to a local proposal to increase financial support for provincial pollution control, said special funds would be arranged for additional subsidies in rural areas, but gave no details of the rollout.
From Barron's
What is understood by most economists, however, is that a federal rate cap would function as a price control for the consumer credit markets.
From Barron's
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
