projection

American  

[pruh-jek-shuhn] / prəˈdʒɛk ʃən /

noun

projections plural

1. a projecting or protruding part.

   Synonyms:

   jut, protrusion, overhang

2. the state or fact of jutting out or protruding.

3. a causing to jut or protrude.

4. the act, process, or result of projecting.

5. Also called map projection.  Cartography. a systematic construction of lines drawn on a plane surface representative of and corresponding to the meridians and parallels of the curved surface of the earth or celestial sphere.

6. Photography.

   1. the act of reproducing on a surface, by optical means, a remote image on a film, slide, etc.

   2. an image so reproduced.

7. the act of visualizing and regarding an idea or the like as an objective reality.

8. something that is so visualized and regarded.

9. calculation of some future thing.

   They fell short of their projection for the rate of growth.

   Synonyms:

   extrapolation, forecast, prediction

10. the act of communicating distinctly and forcefully to an audience.

11. Psychology.

    1. the tendency to ascribe to another person feelings, thoughts, or attitudes present in oneself, or to regard external reality as embodying such feelings, thoughts, etc., in some way.

    2. Psychoanalysis. such an ascription relieving the ego of a sense of guilt or other intolerable feeling.

12. the act of planning or scheming.

13. Alchemy. the casting of the powder of philosophers' stone upon metal in fusion, to transmute it into gold or silver.

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projection British  

/ prəˈdʒɛkʃən /

noun

1. the act of projecting or the state of being projected

2. an object or part that juts out

3. See map projection

4. the representation of a line, figure, or solid on a given plane as it would be seen from a particular direction or in accordance with an accepted set of rules

5. a scheme or plan

6. a prediction based on known evidence and observations

7. 1. the process of showing film on a screen

   2. the image or images shown

8. psychol

   1. the belief, esp in children, that others share one's subjective mental life

   2. the process of projecting one's own hidden desires and impulses See also defence mechanism

9. the mixing by alchemists of powdered philosopher's stone with molten base metals in order to transmute them into gold

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projection Scientific  

/ prə-jĕk′shən /

1. The image of a geometric figure reproduced on a line, plane, or surface.

2. A system of intersecting lines, such as the grid of a map, on which part or all of the globe or another spherical surface is represented as a plane surface.

3. See more at azimuthal projection conic projection cylindrical projection

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonprojection
  noun
• self-projection
  noun
• projectional
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• projections
  plural

Etymology

Origin of projection

First recorded in 1470–80; from Latin prōjectiōn- (stem of prōjectiō ) “a throwing forward”; see project, -ion

Explanation

When you push something away from a central structure, that's called projection. If you predict that the Jets will win tomorrow's game, that's a projection, too — you're pushing your mind away from the present and into the future. The Jets and projection actually have a common linguistic ancestor. Both the ject in projection and the word jet come from the Latin root jactus, which means "throw." A jet plane throws itself — or projects itself — away from a central structure (the Earth) and into the air.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

projection projections

The special 70mm celluloid is touted as having ultra-high resolution and capturing an unusually wide frame, qualities Nolan says are best experienced by seeing a projection of physical film, not the contemporary standard digital format.

From Barron's ● Jul. 26, 2026

The projection "assumes no material escalation in the Middle East" and no significant jump in commodity costs, according to a slide.

From Barron's ● Jul. 21, 2026

By 2024, the figure had risen to more than $12.3 million—over 60 times the original projection.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026

Despite the enthusiasm from moviegoers, film projection has been considered a dying art since most movie theaters worldwide switched to digital projection in the early 2010s.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026

On the projection screen was the faded-color image of a short man in a militarized black jumpsuit and huge, blue suede platforms.

From "Beauty Queens" by Libba Bray

It isn’t clear how the new deal would affect those projections.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 26, 2026

Recent projections by the Bank of England suggest just over five million homeowners should expect their monthly mortgage repayments to increase by the end of 2028.

From BBC ● Jul. 23, 2026

It’s almost certainly too late for that type of comeback this season, with playoff projections giving the Mets a roughly 1% chance.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026

By then, Solar Cycle 25 should reach the newly identified "switch off" point, allowing scientists to base their calculations on direct observations instead of projections.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 21, 2026

In evaluating the intentions and feelings of others, his ability to separate the real situation from his own mental projections is very poor.

From "In Cold Blood" by Truman Capote

Related Words

• calculation
• estimate
• estimation
• forecast