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absolute

[ab-suh-loot, ab-suh-loot]
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adjective
  1. free from imperfection; complete; perfect: absolute liberty.
  2. not mixed or adulterated; pure: absolute alcohol.
  3. complete; outright: an absolute lie; an absolute denial.
  4. free from restriction or limitation; not limited in any way: absolute command; absolute freedom.
  5. unrestrained or unlimited by a constitution, counterbalancing group, etc., in the exercise of governmental power, especially when arbitrary or despotic: an absolute monarch.
  6. viewed independently; not comparative or relative; ultimate; intrinsic: absolute knowledge.
  7. positive; certain: absolute in opinion; absolute evidence.
  8. Grammar.
    1. relatively independent syntactically. The construction It being Sunday in It being Sunday, the family went to church is an absolute construction.
    2. (of a usually transitive verb) used without an object, as the verb give in The charity asked him to give.
    3. (of an adjective) having its noun understood, not expressed, as poor in The poor are always with us.
    4. characterizing the phonological form of a word or phrase occurring by itself, not influenced by surrounding forms, as not in is not (as opposed to isn't), or will in they will (as opposed to they'll).Compare sandhi.
  9. Physics.
    1. independent of arbitrary standards or of particular properties of substances or systems: absolute humidity.
    2. pertaining to a system of units, as the centimeter-gram-second system, based on some primary units, especially units of length, mass, and time.
    3. pertaining to a measurement based on an absolute zero or unit: absolute temperature.
  10. Education. noting or pertaining to the scale of a grading system based on an individual's performance considered as representing his or her knowledge of a given subject regardless of the performance of others in a group: The math department marks on an absolute scale.Compare curve(def 10).
  11. Climatology. noting or pertaining to the highest or lowest value of a meteorological quantity recorded during a given, usually long, period of time: absolute maximum temperature.
  12. Mathematics. (of an inequality) indicating that the expression is true for all values of the variable, as x2 + 1 > 0 for all real numbers x; unconditional.Compare conditional(def 4).
  13. Computers. machine-specific and requiring no translation (opposed to symbolic): absolute coding; absolute address.
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noun
  1. something that is not dependent upon external conditions for existence or for its specific nature, size, etc. (opposed to relative).
  2. the absolute,
    1. something that is free from any restriction or condition.
    2. something that is independent of some or all relations.
    3. something that is perfect or complete.
    4. (in Hegelianism) the world process operating in accordance with the absolute idea.
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Origin of absolute

1350–1400; Middle English < Latin absolūtus free, unrestricted, unconditioned (past participle of absolvere to absolve), equivalent to ab- ab- + solū- loosen + -tus past participle suffix
Related formsab·so·lute·ness, nounnon·ab·so·lute, adjective, nounnon·ab·so·lute·ly, adverbnon·ab·so·lute·ness, nounqua·si-ab·so·lute, adjectivequa·si-ab·so·lute·ly, adverbsub·ab·so·lute, adjective

Synonyms

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2. unadulterated, sheer, unqualified, undiluted, uncontaminated. 4. total, unconditional. 5. autocratic, dictatorial, totalitarian. 6. categorical. 7. unequivocal, definite, sure.

Synonym study

4. Absolute, unqualified, utter all mean unmodified. Absolute implies an unquestionable finality: an absolute coward. Unqualified means without reservations or conditions: an unqualified success. Utter expresses totality or entirety: an utter failure.

Antonyms

1. imperfect, flawed. 2. mixed, diluted, contaminated. 4. qualified. 6. relative.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

restrictionceilingrestraintcapmaximumcurbdeadlinecheckvergefenceboundobstructionrimbrimcircumscriptionborderbrinkabsoluteendgoal

Examples from the Web for absolutes

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • It would be the colourless dream of an immobile plurality of absolutes.

    The Complex Vision

    John Cowper Powys

  • Whosen is obviously the offspring of the other absolutes in n.

    The American Language

    Henry L. Mencken

  • So by its very nature it belongs to the class of the absolutes.

    Preaching and Paganism

    Albert Parker Fitch

  • In other words we act as if those principles were absolutes, whether we can justify it logically or not.

  • As we have seen, he dealt in absolutes: either power was given to an unlimited extent or it was withheld altogether.

British Dictionary definitions for absolutes

Absolute

noun (sometimes not capital)
  1. philosophy
    1. the ultimate basis of reality
    2. that which is totally unconditioned, unrestricted, pure, perfect, or complete
  2. (in the philosophy of Hegel) that towards which all things evolve dialectically
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absolute

adjective
  1. complete; perfect
  2. free from limitations, restrictions, or exceptions; unqualifiedan absolute choice
  3. having unlimited authority; despotican absolute ruler
  4. undoubted; certainthe absolute truth
  5. not dependent on, conditioned by, or relative to anything else; independentan absolute term in logic; the absolute value of a quantity in physics
  6. pure; unmixedabsolute alcohol
  7. (of a grammatical construction) syntactically independent of the main clause, as for example the construction Joking apart in the sentence Joking apart, we'd better leave now
  8. grammar (of a transitive verb) used without a direct object, as the verb intimidate in the sentence His intentions are good, but his rough manner tends to intimidate
  9. grammar (of an adjective) used as a noun, as for instance young and aged in the sentence The young care little for the aged
  10. physics
    1. (postpositive)(of a pressure measurement) not relative to atmospheric pressurethe pressure was 5 bar absolute Compare gauge (def. 18)
    2. denoting absolute or thermodynamic temperature
  11. maths
    1. (of a constant) never changing in value
    2. Also: numerical(of an inequality) unconditional
    3. (of a term) not containing a variable
  12. law (of a court order or decree) coming into effect immediately and not liable to be modified; finalSee decree absolute
  13. law (of a title to property, etc) not subject to any encumbrance or condition
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noun
  1. something that is absolute
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Word Origin

C14: from Latin absolūtus unconditional, freed from, from absolvere. See absolve
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for absolutes

absolute

adj.

late 14c., "unrestricted; complete, perfect;" also "not relative to something else" (mid-15c.), from Middle French absolut (14c., Old French asolu, Modern French absolu), from Latin absolutus, past participle of absolvere "to set free, make separate" (see absolve).

Most of the current senses also were in the Latin word. Sense evolution was "detached, disengaged," thus "perfect, pure." Meaning "despotic" (1610s) is from notion of "absolute in position." Absolute monarchy is recorded from 1735 (absolute king is recorded from 1610s); scientific absolute magnitude (1902), absolute value (1907) are from early 20c. In metaphysics, the absolute "that which is absolute" is from 1809.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper