source

[ sawrs, sohrs ]

/ sɔrs, soʊrs /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR source ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

any thing or place from which something comes, arises, or is obtained; origin: Which foods are sources of calcium?

the beginning or place of origin of a stream or river.

a book, statement, person, etc., supplying information.

the person or business making interest or dividend payments.

a manufacturer or supplier.

Archaic. a natural spring or fountain.

verb (used with object), sourced, sourcing.

to give or trace the source for: The research paper was not accurately sourced. The statement was sourced to the secretary of state.

to find or acquire a source, especially a supplier, for: Some of the components are now sourced in Hong Kong.

verb (used without object), sourced, sourcing.

to contract a manufacturer or supplier: Many large companies are now sourcing overseas.

to seek information about or consider possible options, available personnel, or the like: a job recruiter who was merely sourcing.

Nearby words

sour orange, sour salt, sour-milk cheese, sourball, sourberry, source, source amnesia, source book, source code, source document, source language

Origin of source

1300–50; Middle English sours (noun) < Old French sors (masculine), sourse, source (feminine), noun use of past participle of sourdre < Latin surgere to spring up or forth

SYNONYMS FOR source

1 supplier, originator.

3 authority, reference.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR source ON THESAURUS.COM

Related formssource·ful, adjectivesource·ful·ness, nounsource·less, adjective

Can be confusedsauce source

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for source

Like many trans users, Transartist often gets used as a source of information more than anything else.
Grindr’s Trans Dating Problem|David Levesley|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Jettison your lawyers as a source of prison-yard guidance, Abramoff said.
Abramoff’s Advice for Virginia’s New Jailhouse Guv|Tim Mak, Jackie Kucinich|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
It was getting to create jokes at the source, and to get to hang out with comedians.
Patton Oswalt on Fighting Conservatives With Satire|William O’Connor|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
This simply is not an option for ACC to source indeterminately.
Exclusive: U.S. Drone Fleet at ‘Breaking Point,’ Air Force Says|Dave Majumdar|January 5, 2015|DAILY BEAST

The source code for the original “Shamoon” malware is widely known to have leaked.
No, North Korea Didn’t Hack Sony|Marc Rogers|December 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
A secondary result would be a considerable power development and a source of domestic water supply for southern California.
State of the Union Addresses of Calvin Coolidge|Calvin Coolidge
From no other source than the knowledge that this first proposition contains a clear conception of that which I affirm.
A History of Philosophy in Epitome|Albert Schwegler
To older people it is a source of constant surprise—the attentive interest which children bestow upon stories.
Special Method in Primary Reading and Oral Work with Stories|Charles Alexander McMurry
It is also necessary to refer to the importance of cows' milk as a source of animal food protein.
Animal Proteins|Hugh Garner Bennett
What could they be, I wondered—how fixed, and what the source of their light?
The Metal Monster|A. Merritt

British Dictionary definitions for source

source

/ (sɔːs) /

noun

the point or place from which something originates

a spring that forms the starting point of a stream; headspring
the area where the headwaters of a river risethe source of the Nile

a person, group, etc, that creates, issues, or originates somethingthe source of a complaint

any person, book, organization, etc, from which information, evidence, etc, is obtained
(as modifier)source material

anything, such as a story or work of art, that provides a model or inspiration for a later work

electronics the electrode region in a field-effect transistor from which majority carriers flow into the interelectrode conductivity channel

at source at the point of origin

verb

to determine the source of a news report or story

(tr foll by from) to originate from

(tr) to establish an originator or source of (a product, piece of information, etc)

Word Origin for source

C14: from Old French sors, from sourdre to spring forth, from Latin surgere to rise

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 source (1 of 2)

source

mid-14c., "support, base," from Old French sourse "a rising, beginning, fountainhead of a river or stream" (12c.), fem. noun taken from past participle of sourdre "to rise, spring up," from Latin surgere "to rise" (see surge (n.)). Meaning "a first cause" is from late 14c., as is that of "fountain-head of a river." Meaning "written work (later also a person) supplying information or evidence" is from 1788.

Word Origin and History for source (1 of 2)

source

"obtain from a specified source," 1972, from source (n.). Related: Sourced; sourcing.

source

noun

verb (used with object), sourced, sourcing.

verb (used without object), sourced, sourcing.

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Origin of source

Examples from the Web for source

British Dictionary definitions for source

source

noun

verb

Word Origin for source

Word Origin and History for source (1 of 2)

source

Word Origin and History for source (1 of 2)

source