compact#

compact#
compact adj dense, *close, thick
Analogous words: compressed, condensed, contracted (see CONTRACT vb): concentrated, consolidated, compacted (see COM-PACT vb): solid, *firm, hard: *tight
Contrasted words: ioose, slack: diffuse, prolix, verbose, *wordy: tenuous, rare, *thin
compact vb Compact, consolidate, unify, concentrate are comparable when meaning to bring or gather together the parts, particles, elements, or units of a thing so as to form a close mass or an integral whole.
Compact stresses the process more than the effect. It usually suggests a packing or pressing together of many things so as to form a closely arranged mass or a dense substance and may be used in reference both to material and immaterial things; sometimes it carries so strong an implication of solid formation or construction that it fundamentally means to build firmly or to strengthen
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heat and lack of rain have compacted the soil

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compact matted fibers of wool and hair into felt by rolling and pressing

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sweet spring ... a box where sweets compacted lie— Herbert

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it is based on solid facts, nay, is compacted of solid facts from the first sentence to the last— Times Lit. Sup.

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Consolidate implies a merging or uniting, often in an exceedingly close union, of previously distinct but usually homogeneous or complementary things. The term may take as its object such a whole as a nation, a people, or an empire or as a substance or material and may imply a process which promotes the binding together of the parts, elements, or individuals so that solidarity or solidity is achieved
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war tends to consolidate a people

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organize state leagues for political action in order to consolidate the labor vote— Watkins

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rolling and cooling consolidated the newly laid asphalt into a firm smooth pavement

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But consolidate can also take as its objects the units (as parts, elements, individuals, or groups) which have been brought together in close union
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these organizations worked independently, and subsequently they were partially consolidatedHeiser

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two marriages with the Dutch Vandergraves had consolidated these qualities of thrift and handsome living— Wharton

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Unify implies a union of heterogeneous or homogeneous parts, elements, or individuals that results in the making or producing of a thing that has oneness and integrity and that stands by itself as a thing apart; the term does not, however, carry as strong an implication of solidarity as does consolidate but, on the other hand, it places stress on the integration of parts so that each does its appointed work or serves its own purpose to the benefit not only of itself but of the whole; thus, a dramatist unifies (not consolidates) the play he composes; after a civil war, the task of the government is to unify (rather than consolidate) a nation; the imagination of a great poet unifies a mass of images and impressions; the Homeric poems may have been originally a collection of narrative poems, but it seems likely that one person unified them
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would now be technically possible to unify the world and abolish warRussell

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Concentrate usually carries the implication of bringing together a number of things that are scattered or diffused and of massing them around a point or center;
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concentrate troops at places where an attack is expected

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concentrate one's efforts on a single piece of work

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the science of that age was all divination, clairvoyance . . . seeking in an instant of vision to concentrate a thousand experiences— Pater

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Concentrate may be extended to imply the fixing of the mind or attention on one thing so that all distracting objects or thoughts are eliminated
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her excitement made her unable to concentrate on the task

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A similar implication of eliminating whatever weakens, dilutes, or adulterates is found in technical use; thus, the chemist concentrates a solution by evaporating the solvent; a miner concentrates ores (i. e., separates the base from the precious metals) by a machine or by washing.
Analogous words: compress, condense, *contract: bind, *tie: unite, combine (see JOIN): knit, *weave
Contrasted words: dissipate, disperse, *scatter: *separate, part, divide
compact n pact, entente, convention, concordat, treaty, cartel, *contract, bargain

New Dictionary of Synonyms. 2014.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • compact — compact, e [ kɔ̃pakt ] adj. et n. m. • 1377; lat. compactus « amassé », de compingere 1 ♦ Qui est formé de parties serrées, dont les éléments constitutifs sont très cohérents. ⇒ dense, serré. Bloc, pâté d immeubles compact. Foule compacte. Poudre …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Compact — as used in politics may refer broadly to a pact or treaty; in more specific cases it may refer to: Interstate compact Compact government, a type of colonial rule utilized in British North America Compact of Free Association whereby the sovereign… …   Wikipedia

  • compact — COMPÁCT, Ă, compacţi, te, adj. 1. Care se compune din particule strâns legate între ele; îndesat, dens. ♢ Caractere compacte = litere de tipar groase şi negre; aldine. ♦ (Despre o mulţime, un grup de oameni etc.) Numeros şi des. 2. fig. (Despre… …   Dicționar Român

  • compact — I (dense) adjective arranged within a small space, bunched, close, close knit, close set, close together, closely united, clustered, cohesive, compacted, compressed, concentrated, condensed, consolidated, constricted, constringed, contracted,… …   Law dictionary

  • Compact — Com*pact (k[o^]m*p[a^]kt ), p. p. & a. [L. compactus, p. p. of compingere to join or unite; com + pangere to fasten, fix: cf. F. compacte. See {Pact}.] 1. Joined or held together; leagued; confederated. [Obs.] Compact with her that s gone. Shak.… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • compact — [adj1] condensed appressed, bunched, close, compressed, crowded, dense, firm, hard, impenetrable, impermeable, packed, pressed, solid, thick, tight; concepts 481,483,774 Ant. loose, slack, uncondensed compact [adj2] short, brief boiled down,… …   New thesaurus

  • Compact — Com pact (k[o^]m p[a^]kt), n. [L. compactum, fr. compacisci, p. p. compactus, to make an agreement with; com + pacisci to make an agreement. See {Pact}.] An agreement between parties; a covenant or contract. [1913 Webster] The law of nations… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • compact — [kəm pakt′, käm′pakt΄; ] for n., always [ käm′pakt΄] adj. [ME < L compactus, concentrated, pp. of compingere, to fasten together < com , with, together + pangere, to fix, fasten: see PEACE] 1. closely and firmly packed or put together;… …   English World dictionary

  • compact — /ˈkɔmpact, ingl. ˈkəmpækt/ s. m. inv. accorc. di compact disc …   Sinonimi e Contrari. Terza edizione

  • compact — is stressed on the second syllable as a verb and predicative adjective. As a noun (meaning ‘an agreement’ or ‘a case for face powder’) and as an attributive adjective, the stress is normally on the first syllable, except that it is variable in… …   Modern English usage

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