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limited

[lim-i-tid]
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adjective
  1. confined within limits; restricted or circumscribed: a limited space; limited resources.
  2. Government. restricted with reference to governing powers by limitations prescribed in laws and in a constitution, as in limited monarchy; limited government.
  3. characterized by an inability to think imaginatively or independently; lacking originality or scope; narrow: a rather limited intelligence.
  4. Chiefly British.
    1. responsible for the debts of a company only to a specified amount proportionate to the percentage of stock held.
    2. (of a business firm) owned by stockholders, each having a restricted liability for the company's debts.
    3. (usually initial capital letter)incorporated; Inc. Abbreviation: Ltd.
  5. (of railroad trains, buses, etc.) making only a limited number of stops en route.
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noun
  1. a limited train, bus, etc.
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Origin of limited

First recorded in 1545–55; limit + -ed2
Related formslim·it·ed·ly, adverblim·it·ed·ness, noun

limit

[lim-it]
noun
  1. the final, utmost, or furthest boundary or point as to extent, amount, continuance, procedure, etc.: the limit of his experience; the limit of vision.
  2. a boundary or bound, as of a country, area, or district.
  3. Mathematics.
    1. a number such that the value of a given function remains arbitrarily close to this number when the independent variable is sufficiently close to a specified point or is sufficiently large. The limit of 1/x is zero as x approaches infinity; the limit of (x − 1)2 is zero as x approaches 1.
    2. a number such that the absolute value of the difference between terms of a given sequence and the number approaches zero as the index of the terms increases to infinity.
    3. one of two numbers affixed to the integration symbol for a definite integral, indicating the interval or region over which the integration is taking place and substituted in a primitive, if one exists, to evaluate the integral.
  4. limits, the premises or region enclosed within boundaries: We found them on school limits after hours.
  5. Games. the maximum sum by which a bet may be raised at any one time.
  6. the limit, Informal. something or someone that exasperates, delights, etc., to an extreme degree: You have made errors before, but this is the limit.
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verb (used with object)
  1. to restrict by or as if by establishing limits (usually followed by to): Please limit answers to 25 words.
  2. to confine or keep within limits: to limit expenditures.
  3. Law. to fix or assign definitely or specifically.
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Origin of limit

1325–75; Middle English lymyt < Latin līmit- (stem of līmes) boundary, path between fields
Related formslim·it·a·ble, adjectivelim·it·a·ble·ness, nouno·ver·lim·it, verb (used with object)re·lim·it, verb (used with object)un·der·lim·it, nounun·der·lim·it, verb (used with object)
Can be confusedboundary limit parameter variable (see synonym study at boundary) (see usage note at parameter)limit limitation

Synonyms

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2. confine, frontier, border. 8. restrain, bound.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

finitenarrowdefinedpoorrestrictedsmallinsufficientreducedminimaldiminishedparticularfixedcontrolledreservedsectionalboundrestrainedqualifiedboundedmodified

Examples from the Web for limited

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • A grievous error it is to suppose that Cupid's artillery is limited to bow and arrows.

    The Spenders

    Harry Leon Wilson

  • Kate's nature was limited; part of her graceful equipoise was narrowness.

    Malbone

    Thomas Wentworth Higginson

  • Not the Trinity should come first to powers so limited as mine—but God.

  • Now is the time to subscribe, as these Premiums will be offered for a limited time only.

  • I wanted, rather, to explain to you that her opportunities had been limited.

British Dictionary definitions for limited

limited

adjective
  1. having a limit; restricted; confined
  2. without fullness or scope; narrow
  3. (of governing powers, sovereignty, etc) restricted or checked, by or as if by a constitution, laws, or an assemblylimited government
  4. US and Canadian (of a train) stopping only at certain stations and having only a set number of cars for passengers
  5. mainly British (of a business enterprise) owned by shareholders whose liability for the enterprise's debts is restricted
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noun
  1. US and Canadian a limited train, bus, etc
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Derived Formslimitedly, adverblimitedness, noun

limit

noun
  1. (sometimes plural) the ultimate extent, degree, or amount of somethingthe limit of endurance
  2. (often plural) the boundary or edge of a specific areathe city limits
  3. (often plural) the area of premises within specific boundaries
  4. the largest quantity or amount allowed
  5. maths
    1. a value to which a function f(x) approaches as closely as desired as the independent variable approaches a specified value (x = a) or approaches infinity
    2. a value to which a sequence a n approaches arbitrarily close as n approaches infinity
    3. the limit of a sequence of partial sums of a convergent infinite seriesthe limit of 1 + ½ + ¼ + ⅛ + … is 2
  6. maths one of the two specified values between which a definite integral is evaluated
  7. the limit informal a person or thing that is intolerably exasperating
  8. off limits
    1. out of bounds
    2. forbidden to do or usesmoking was off limits everywhere
  9. within limits to a certain or limited extentI approve of it within limits
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verb -its, -iting or -ited (tr)
  1. to restrict or confine, as to area, extent, time, etc
  2. law to agree, fix, or assign specifically
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Derived Formslimitable, adjectivelimitableness, nounlimitless, adjectivelimitlessly, adverblimitlessness, noun

Word Origin

C14: from Latin līmes boundary
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 limited

adj.

1550s, past participle adjective from limit (v.); as a stand-alone for limited express train, by 1883. Limited edition is from 1920; limited monarchy from 1640s; limited war is from 1948. In British company names, Limited (abbrev. Ltd.), 1855, is short for limited liability company, one in which the liability of partners is limited, usually to the amount of their capital investment.

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limit

v.

late 14c., from Old French limiter "mark (a boundary), restrict; specify," from Latin limitare "to bound, limit, fix," from limes "boundary, limit" (see limit (n.)). Related: limited; limiting.

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limit

n.

c.1400, "boundary, frontier," from Old French limite "a boundary," from Latin limitem (nominative limes) "a boundary, limit, border, embankment between fields," related to limen "threshold." Originally of territory; general sense from early 15c. Colloquial sense of "the very extreme, the greatest degree imaginable" is from 1904.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
limited in Medicine

limit

(lĭm′ĭt)
n.
  1. The point, edge, or line beyond which something cannot or may not proceed.
  2. A confining or restricting object, agent, or influence.
  3. The greatest or least amount, number, or extent allowed or possible.
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v.
  1. To confine or restrict within a boundary or bounds.
  2. To fix definitely; to specify.
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Related formslim′it•a•ble adj.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
limited in Science

limit

[lĭm′ĭt]
  1. A number or point for which, from a given set of numbers or points, one can choose an arbitrarily close number or point. For example, for the set of all real numbers greater than zero and less than one, the numbers one and zero are limit points, since one can pick a number from the set arbitrarily close to one or zero (even though one and zero are not themselves in the set). Limits form the basis for calculus, where a number L is defined to be the limit approached by a function f(x) as x approaches a if, for every positive number ε, there exists a number δ such that |;f(x)-L|; < ε if 0 < |;x-a|; < δ.
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The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Idioms and Phrases with limited

limit

see go whole hog (the limit); sky's the limit; the limit.

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The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.