project

American  

[proj-ekt, -ikt, pruh-jekt] / ˈprɒdʒ ɛkt, -ɪkt, prəˈdʒɛkt /

noun

• projects
  plural

1. something that is contemplated, devised, or planned; plan; scheme.

   I have several little projects around the house that I’d like to tackle in my time off.

   Synonyms:

   proposal

2. a large or major undertaking, especially one involving considerable money, personnel, and equipment.

   The city is undertaking several public works projects to modernize and upgrade infrastructure.

3. a specific task of investigation, especially in scholarship.

   Federal funding supports some cancer-related projects while other research is sustained by private grants.

4. Education. a supplementary, long-term educational assignment necessitating personal initiative, undertaken by an individual student or a group of students.

   For my literature class project, I wrote an original rock opera and performed one song from it.

5. Informal. the projects, a housing project, typically one constructed as a development of high-rise towers with apartments for low-income residents, especially in the second half of the 20th century.

   Back in those days, the projects were no place to raise a family.

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verb (used with object)

• projects,
  present (3rd person singular)
• projected,
  past participle,  past
• projecting
  present participle

1. to propose, contemplate, or plan.

   Synonyms:

   devise, plot, scheme, contrive

2. to throw, cast, or impel forward or onward.

3. to set forth or calculate (some future thing).

   They projected the building costs for the next five years.

   Synonyms:

   predict

4. to throw or cause to fall upon a surface or into space, as a ray of light or a shadow.

5. to cause (a figure or image) to appear, as on a background.

6. to regard (something within the mind, as a feeling, thought, or attitude) as having some form of reality outside the mind.

   He projected a thrilling picture of the party's future.

7. to cause to jut out or protrude.

8. Geometry.

   1. to throw forward an image of (a figure or the like) by straight lines or rays, either parallel, converging, or diverging, that pass through all its points and reproduce it on another surface or figure.

   2. to transform the points (of one figure) into those of another by a correspondence between points.

9. to present (an idea, program, etc.) for consideration or action.

   They made every effort to project the notion of world peace.

10. to use (one's voice, gestures, etc.) forcefully enough to be perceived at a distance, as by all members of the audience in a theater.

11. to communicate clearly and forcefully (one's thoughts, personality, role, etc.) to an audience, as in a theatrical performance; produce a compelling image of.

12. to cause (the voice) to appear to come from a source other than oneself, as in ventriloquism; throw.

verb (used without object)

• projects,
  present (3rd person singular)
• projected,
  past participle,  past
• projecting
  present participle

1. to extend or protrude beyond something else.

   Synonyms:

   overhang, obtrude, bulge

2. to use one's voice forcefully enough to be heard at a distance, as in a theater.

3. to produce a clear impression of one's thoughts, personality, role, etc., in an audience; communicate clearly and forcefully.

4. Psychology. to ascribe one's own feelings, thoughts, or attitudes to others.

project British  

noun

1. a proposal, scheme, or design

2. 1. a task requiring considerable or concerted effort, such as one by students

   2. the subject of such a task

3. short for housing project

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verb

1. (tr) to propose or plan

2. (tr) to predict; estimate; extrapolate

   we can project future needs on the basis of the current birth rate

3. (tr) to throw or cast forwards

4. to jut or cause to jut out

5. (tr) to send forth or transport in the imagination

   to project oneself into the future

6. (tr) to cause (an image) to appear on a surface

7. to cause (one's voice) to be heard clearly at a distance

8. psychol

   1. (intr) (esp of a child) to believe that others share one's subjective mental life

   2. to impute to others (one's hidden desires and impulses), esp as a means of defending oneself Compare introject

9. (tr) geometry to draw a projection of

10. (intr) to communicate effectively, esp to a large gathering

Synonym Usage

See plan.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• counterproject
  noun
• subproject
  noun
• reproject
  verb
• nonprojecting
  adjective
• projectable
  adjective
• unprojected
  adjective
• unprojecting
  adjective
• projectingly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• projects
  plural

Participles

• projecting
  present
• projected
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• project
  simple
• projects
  simple
• have projected
  perfect
• has projected
  perfect
• am projecting
  progressive
• are projecting
  progressive
• is projecting
  progressive
• have been projecting
  perfect progressive
• has been projecting
  perfect progressive

Past

• projected
  simple
• had projected
  perfect
• was projecting
  progressive
• were projecting
  progressive
• had been projecting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will project
  simple
• will have projected
  perfect
• will be projecting
  progressive
• will have been projecting
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of project

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English noun project(e) “design, plan,” from Medieval Latin prōjectum, Latin: “projecting part,” noun use of neuter of Latin prōjectus, past participle of prōicere “to throw forward, extend,” equivalent to prō- pro- ¹ + -icere, combining form of jacere “to throw”

Explanation

A project is a piece of work that is planned or intended. Plan a little extra time for your gingerbread house project — gluing the walls and roof can take a while. If you call a person your project, pronounced PRAH-jekt, it means you are trying to improve them by telling them how to behave, etc. As a verb, pronounced pro-JEKT, it means to jut out literally — The fireplace projects into the dining room — or figuratively — Try to project your ideas forcefully. If you assume another person is feeling the same things you are, you are projecting your feelings onto them.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

project projects projected projecting

"Our teams are mobilised and working. We are confident about the future of the Alpes project."

From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026

A final investment decision on that project is due by the end of FY 2027.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 10, 2026

As the project stalled in litigation, San Francisco reemerged with a proposed site on Treasure Island.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 10, 2026

I have to remind him constantly to research before starting a project, or to reference campaign materials.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 10, 2026

She still knows more about bees than anyone who isn’t an actual beekeeper because she got so into her sixth-grade science fair project.

From "Keeping Pace" by Laurie Morrison

And most recently, states have been scrapping tax incentives that aim to lure data-center projects to their states, which would cost the builders billions of dollars, the Wall Street Journal reported.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 10, 2026

US election tracking site Decision Desk HQ projects Democrats will win the House 230-205 and take the Senate 51-49.

From Barron's ● Sep. 10, 2026

Dismissed staff previously told BBC Scotland News they were discussing working conditions at the firm in a private digital forum, not talking about projects.

From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026

The Global Port Tracker from the National Retail Federation and Hackett Associates projects that September could be the busiest month of the year for U.S. imports.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 10, 2026

“They worked on a lot of projects together.”

From "The Line Tender" by Kate Allen

The table includes projected sales growth for calendar 2027, based on consensus estimates among the analysts, as well as consensus price targets:

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 10, 2026

Animations projected on the wall accompany the tapestry, zooming in on details and key events and characters in the artwork, which is replete with gore and drama.

From Barron's ● Sep. 10, 2026

Lewis said dew point temperatures are projected to be in the 70s for most of Los Angeles and Ventura counties.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026

For the current quarter, same-store sales are projected to be up 3% to 4%, ahead of the 2.5% gain that Wall Street modeled.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026

Citra pulled out her phone and projected a series of holograms into her palm, cupping it so no one but Rowan could see.

From "Scythe" by Neal Shusterman

Same-store sales increased 2.2%, ahead of the 1.9% growth that Wall Street was projecting.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026

They also anticipate the lender’s earnings growth momentum to continue, projecting a 4.4% compound annual growth rate for profit over 2025-2028.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 1, 2026

Its essence was its array of cantilevered terraces, set at right angles to one another and projecting deep out into space.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026

In the current quarter, Burlington expects adjusted earnings per share of $1.60 to $1.70, which would be below the $2.04 analysts are projecting.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026

The insects buzzed round his ears and suddenly a little cloud of flies flew up, disturbed from a projecting stone.

From "Watership Down: A Novel" by Richard Adams

Related Words

• activity
• business
• deal
• design
• enterprise
• job
• plan
• program
• proposal
• scheme
• strategy
• task
• venture