project

[ noun proj-ekt, -ikt; verb pruh-jekt ]

/ noun ˈprɒdʒ ɛkt, -ɪkt; verb prəˈdʒɛkt /

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See synonyms for: project / projects on Thesaurus.com

noun

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.

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.

a specific task of investigation, especially in scholarship: Federal funding supports some cancer-related projects while other research is sustained by private grants.

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.

the projects, Informal. 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.

verb (used with object) pro·ject

[pruh-jekt] /prəˈdʒɛkt/

to propose, contemplate, or plan.

to throw, cast, or impel forward or onward.

to set forth or calculate (some future thing): They projected the building costs for the next five years.

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

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

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.

to cause to jut out or protrude.

Geometry.

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

to present (an idea, program, etc.) for consideration or action: They made every effort to project the notion of world peace.

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.

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

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

verb (used without object) pro·ject

[pruh-jekt] /prəˈdʒɛkt/

to extend or protrude beyond something else.

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

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

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

OTHER WORDS FOR project

1 proposal.

6 contrive, scheme, plot, devise.

8 predict.

18 bulge, obtrude, overhang.

See synonyms for project on Thesaurus.com

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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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”

synonym study for project

1. See plan.

OTHER WORDS FROM project

pro·ject·a·ble, adjectivepro·ject·ing·ly, adverbcoun·ter·proj·ect, nounnon·pro·ject·ing, adjective

re·pro·ject, verbsubproject, nounun·pro·ject·ed, adjectiveun·pro·ject·ing, adjective

Words nearby project

Prohibition party, prohibitive, prohibitory, prohormone, proinsulin, project, projected window, projectile, projection, projection booth, projectionist

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use project in a sentence

Interviews were conducted in Arizona, Florida and North Carolina as part of a joint project by the Kaiser Family Foundation and Cook Political Report.
Election live updates: Trump returns to Wisconsin; Biden to face live audience at town hall|Colby Itkowitz, Felicia Sonmez, John Wagner|September 17, 2020|Washington Post
The project took data on the soil and slopes across California and then included wildfire risk and climate projections, and used that to show which roadways were vulnerable to post-fire debris flows.
California wildfires may give way to massive mudslides|Ula Chrobak|September 17, 2020|Popular-Science
Launching a project to grow more palm oil on less land was the easy part, he knew.
The Environmental Headache in Your Shampoo - Issue 90: Something Green|Anastasia Bendebury & Michael Shilo DeLay|September 16, 2020|Nautilus
We urge more investors to invest capital into high-impact projects where everyone succeeds as a result.
Opportunity Zones haven’t fully reached their potential, but don’t write them off yet|jakemeth|September 16, 2020|Fortune

That project began in 2018 with Kerri Evelyn Harris's campaign, and the vote patterns today will reveal whether the left can make more gains with suburbanites.
The Trailer: The First State goes last|David Weigel|September 15, 2020|Washington Post
I started just writing these songs, at first it felt like a project or something.
Deer Tick's John McCauley on Ten Years in Rock and Roll|James Joiner|January 2, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Thus begins an episode of The Mindy Project centered around a guy trying to have butt sex with his girlfriend.
Year of the Butt: How the Booty Changed the World in 2014|Kevin Fallon|December 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Riots broke out in 1994, after Iranian authorities replaced a Sunni mosque in Mashad with a development project.
The Dangerous Drug-Funded Secret War Between Iran and Pakistan|Umar Farooq|December 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Gurley was gunned down on Nov. 20, when a pair of cops was patrolling the rough housing project.
Protesters Demand Justice For Gurley As Gap Grows Between Cops and NYC|M.L. Nestel|December 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Opechatesgays.com is one project of a much larger organization, EthicalOil.org—and here is where things get really interesting.
How Canadian Oilmen Pinkwash the Keystone Pipeline|Jay Michaelson|December 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The worthy knight not being now alive to veto the project, a figure of him has been placed opposite the College in Edmund Street.
Showell's Dictionary of Birmingham|Thomas T. Harman and Walter Showell
Her black eyes were fixed intently on his face, but she was thinking, weighing in her mind some suddenly-formed project.
The Red Year|Louis Tracy
Very soon I induced my directors to adopt the view that the railway company must encourage and help the project.
Fifty Years of Railway Life in England, Scotland and Ireland|Joseph Tatlow
New York is like one of those nightmares a certain class of writers project and label 'Earth in the Year 2000.'
Ancestors|Gertrude Atherton
The project of a congress was accordingly abandoned, and everywhere recrimination gave place to rejoicing.
The Eve of the Revolution|Carl Becker

British Dictionary definitions for project

project

noun (ˈprɒdʒɛkt)

a proposal, scheme, or design

a task requiring considerable or concerted effort, such as one by students
the subject of such a task

US short for housing project

verb (prəˈdʒɛkt)

(tr) to propose or plan

(tr) to predict; estimate; extrapolatewe can project future needs on the basis of the current birth rate

(tr) to throw or cast forwards

to jut or cause to jut out

(tr) to send forth or transport in the imaginationto project oneself into the future

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

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

psychol

(intr) (esp of a child) to believe that others share one's subjective mental life
to impute to others (one's hidden desires and impulses), esp as a means of defending oneselfCompare introject

(tr) geometry to draw a projection of

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

Word Origin for project

C14: from Latin prōicere to throw down, from pro- 1 + iacere to throw

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

project

OTHER WORDS FOR project

Origin of project

synonym study for project

OTHER WORDS FROM project

Words nearby project

Words related to project

How to use project in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for project

Word Origin for project