object

noun ob·ject \ ˈäb-jikt , -(ˌ)jekt \

Updated on: 8 Dec 2017

Definition of object

1 a : something material that may be perceived by the senses

I see an object in the distance.

b : something that when viewed stirs a particular emotion (such as pity)

Look on the tragic loading of this bed … the object poisons sight; let it be hid.
—William Shakespeare

2 a : something mental or physical toward which thought, feeling, or action is directed

an object for study

the object of my affection

delicately carved art objects

b : something physical that is perceived by an individual and becomes an agent for psychological identification

The mother is the primary object of the child.

3 a : the goal or end of an effort or activity : purpose, objective

Their object is to investigate the matter thoroughly.

The object of the game is to score the most points.

b : a cause for attention or concern

Money is no object.

4 : a thing that forms an element of or constitutes the subject matter of an investigation or science

objects of study

5 a : a noun or noun equivalent (such as a pronoun, gerund, or clause) denoting the goal or result of the action of a verb (such as ball in I hit the ball)

b : a noun or noun equivalent in a prepositional phrase (such as table in on the table)

6 a : a data structure in object-oriented programming that can contain functions (see ¹function 7) as well as data, variables, and other data structures

b : a discrete entity (such as a window or icon) in computer graphics (see ²graphic 2b) that can be manipulated independently of other such entities

—

objectless

play \ˈäb-jikt-ləs, -(ˌ)jekt-\ adjective

—

objectlessness

noun

See object defined for English-language learners

See object defined for kids

Examples of object in a Sentence

There were three objects in the box: a comb, a pen, and a button.
His object is to determine how much the business will cost to operate.

Recent Examples of object from the Web

After 9/11, Muslims in and around Paterson reported that people screamed anti-Muslim insults and threw objects at them, particularly after false rumors spread that people were dancing in the streets to celebrate the attacks.

— Washington Post, "Muslims in NJ city fear another backlash after latest attack," 2 Nov. 2017
Ballin’ Budget: $125+ Ah, so money isn’t an object for you, huh?

— megan lewis, kansascity, "KC Staycations: What to do if you’re broke, ballin’ or somewhere in between," 25 Oct. 2017
Clare happened upon Scott throwing objects from the store in a dumpster, Kayser said.

— scott wartman, Cincinnati.com, "Don Clare, tireless champion for Rabbit Hash, dies," 24 Oct. 2017
Astronomers use spectroscopic instruments in telescopes to observe different wavelengths coming from an object, from radio waves to visible light to gamma rays.

— marina koren, The Atlantic, "A Movie 130 Million Years in the Making," 19 Oct. 2017
In April 2018, the European Space Agency’s Gaia probe will release 3D coordinates for more than 1 billion Milky Way objects, most of them stars, which should show the spiral arms, especially the nearby ones, in unprecedented detail.

— joshua sokol, Science | AAAS, "Astronomers map Milky Way’s most distant outpost," 12 Oct. 2017
The former Explorer was able to describe posters and other objects in Betts’ home, the documents say.

— matthew glowicki, The Courier-Journal, "Scouts detail encounters with two cops accused in Explorer sex abuse scandal," 5 Oct. 2017
The demonstrators retreated down a street, breaking windows with trash cans and throwing objects at police.

— Bloomberg.com, "St. Louis Area Readies for Third Day of Demonstrations," 17 Sep. 2017
People with tryphophobia typically have a visceral reaction to objects like beehives, lotus seed pods, sponges.

— patti greco, Cosmopolitan, "American Horror Story: Cult Taps Into the Very Real Fear of Holes," 6 Sep. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'object.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of object

Middle English, from Medieval Latin objectum, from Latin, neuter of objectus, past participle of obicere to throw in the way, present, hinder, from ob- in the way + jacere to throw — more at ob-, jet

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

See Words from the same year

object Synonyms

Synonyms

thing

Related Words

article, item, piece; being, entity, substance; commodity, good, ware; dingus, doohickey, thingamabob, thingamajig (or thingumajig), thingummy, whatchamacallit, whatnot; accessory (also accessary), accompaniment, bauble, curio; gaud, gewgaw (also geegaw), knickknack (also nicknack), novelty, ornamental, spangle, token, trinket

Near Antonyms

nonentity

Synonym Discussion of object

intention, intent, purpose, design, aim, end, object, objective, goal mean what one intends to accomplish or attain. intention implies little more than what one has in mind to do or bring about.

- announced his intention to marry

intent suggests clearer formulation or greater deliberateness.

- the clear intent of the statute

purpose suggests a more settled determination.

- being successful was her purpose in life

design implies a more carefully calculated plan.

- the order of events came by accident, not design

aim adds to these implications of effort directed toward attaining or accomplishing.

- her aim was to raise film to an art form

end stresses the intended effect of action often in distinction or contrast to the action or means as such.

- willing to use any means to achieve his end

object may equal end but more often applies to a more individually determined wish or need.

- his constant object was the achievement of pleasure

objective implies something tangible and immediately attainable.

- their objective is to seize the oil fields

goal suggests something attained only by prolonged effort and hardship.

- worked years to reach her goals

object

verb ob·ject \ əb-ˈjekt \

Definition of object

transitive verb

: to put forth in opposition or as an objection

objected that the statement was misleading

intransitive verb

1 : to oppose something firmly and usually with words or arguments

2 : to feel distaste for something

—

objector

play \əb-ˈjek-tər\ noun

See object defined for English-language learners

Examples of object in a Sentence

No one objected when the paintings were removed.
“We can't buy the chair,” he objected. “It won't fit in the car.”

Recent Examples of object from the Web

Louisiana legislators who were upset about Edwards' order also only objected to the language that protected transgender people, and didn't complain about protections for lesbian and gay state workers.

— julia o'donoghue, NOLA.com, "John Bel Edwards can't protect LGBT state workers, appeals court rules," 1 Nov. 2017
The committee weighs in Hanson said the development was a bad choice for the committee, and objected to the height of the proposal.

— karen pilarski, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Wauwatosa committee rejected a plan for an 18-story tower at St. Camillus," 26 Oct. 2017
Just last month, Southwest Airlines had to apologize after a similar incident in which a woman was dragged off her flight for objecting to another passenger’s pet being on the flight.

— david meyer, Fortune, "2 Cops Were Fired After Officers Dragged a Bloodied Passenger off a United Airlines Flight," 18 Oct. 2017
Neighbors had objected to possible noise and light pollution from the golf entertainment facility.

— ely portillo, charlotteobserver, "Controversial new development plan approved in University City," 16 Oct. 2017
Today the building houses the Museum of Russian Political History, which tells the story of the revolution in clear and splendid detail, using text, photos, film, sounds and objects.

— olga ingurazova, Smithsonian, "What Ever Happened to the Russian Revolution?," 29 Sep. 2017
The alliance with Saudi Arabia helps Russia build its influence in the Middle East beyond Syria and Iran, which hasn’t objected to Moscow’s new ties to Riyadh.

— james marson, WSJ, "Energy Alliance Propels Russia-Saudi Cooperation," 21 Sep. 2017
Village Board member Guy Franzese objected to the village's spending taxpayer money on an issue that does not impact all its residents and that may not be within their legal authority.

— kimberly fornek, chicagotribune.com, "Burr Ridge to research options to protect residents' interests in Hinsdale District 86," 12 Sep. 2017
Wood and Flaherty have joined the city in objecting to Yates being on the case while remaining council president.

— phillip m. bailey, The Courier-Journal, "Another former Youth Explorer is alleging sexual abuse by Louisville police officer," 31 Aug. 2017

Origin and Etymology of object

Middle English, from Latin objectus, past participle of obicere to throw in the way, object

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 15th century

See Words from the same year

object Synonyms

Synonyms

demur, except, expostulate, kick, protest, remonstrate, take exception, take issue

Related Words

cavil, quibble; challenge, dare, defy, fight; conflict, debate, dispute, hassle, quarrel, squabble, wrangle; beef, bellyache, bitch, bleat, carp, caterwaul, complain, crab, croak, fuss, gripe, grizzle, grouch, grouse, growl, grumble, grump, holler, keen, maunder [chiefly British], moan, murmur, mutter, nag, repine, scream, squawk, squeal, wail, whimper, whine, whinge [British], yammer, yawp (or yaup), yowl; balk, gag, stick; censure, criticize, denounce; disobey, rebel, withstand; demonstrate

Near Antonyms

approve, sanction; accept; accede, acquiesce, agree, assent; adhere, comply, conform, follow, mind, obey, observe; advocate, champion, defend, maintain, support, sustain, uphold; applaud, cheer, commend

object

adjective \ ˈäb-jikt , -(ˌ)jekt \

Definition of object

: of, relating to, or being object code

an object file

Recent Examples of object from the Web

Two genial Texans, Les Thomas and Gary Ford, gave us object lessons in marrying people to place.

— Southern Living, "Meet the Family," 1 May 2017
Object models are better left to viewing on-screen with textures intact.

— bill loguidice, Ars Technica, "The pitfalls and potential of inexpensive 3D scanning solutions," 17 June 2017
Princeton Lightwave's technology will help Argo move forward in handling object detection in challenging scenarios, such as fog, heavy rain and snow and safely operating at high speeds.

— greg gardner, Detroit Free Press, "Ford partner Argo AI buys Princeton Lightwave to expand autonomous tools," 27 Oct. 2017
Democrats on the Judiciary Committee, meanwhile, didn’t even object to Senator Orrin Hatch’s suggestion that Hill had copied one of her stories about Clarence Thomas from The Exorcist.

— rebecca traister, The Cut, "The Conversation We Should Be Having," 19 Oct. 2017
Project Quantum has several strands to it: Mozilla has developed a new CSS engine, Stylo, that parses CSS files, applies the styling rules to elements on the page, and calculates object sizes and positions.

— peter bright, Ars Technica, "Firefox takes a Quantum leap forward with new developer edition," 26 Sep. 2017
Witness his Instagram feed, which regularly features object tableaux from his home in Rome

— Harper's BAZAAR, "Gucci's Urban Garden," 19 July 2017
Many will no doubt object to creating a tax credit that would apply to U.S. citizens but not to immigrants.

— reihan salam, Slate Magazine, "Smart Tax Reform Could Save the Flailing Trump Presidency," 27 Apr. 2017
Hence, the New Yorker’s dilemma: resign yourself to living with an unsightly object year-round or go to the trouble of removing it?

— ronda kaysen, New York Times, "The Window Air-Conditioner: Should It Stay or Go?," 3 Nov. 2017

First Known Use of object

1959

OBJECT Defined for English Language Learners

object

noun

Definition of object for English Language Learners

: a thing that you can see and touch and that is not alive
: someone or something that makes you feel a specified emotion
: someone or something that your attention or interest is directed toward

object

verb

Definition of object for English Language Learners

: to disagree with something or oppose something
: to say (something that explains why you oppose something or disagree)

OBJECT Defined for Kids

object

noun ob·ject \ ˈäb-jikt \

Definition of object for Students

1 : something that may be seen or felt

Tables and chairs are objects.

2 : purpose, aim

The object is to raise money.

3 : something that arouses feelings in an observer

That diamond is the object of their envy.

4 : a noun or a term behaving like a noun that receives the action of a verb or completes the meaning of a preposition

object

verb ob·ject \ əb-ˈjekt \

Definition of object for Students

objected; objecting

1 : to offer or mention as a reason for a feeling of disapproval

She objected that the price was too high.

2 : to oppose something firmly and usually with words

Surely her mother would not object to a nutritious hard-boiled egg.
—Beverly Cleary, Ramona Quimby

Synonym Discussion of object

object and protest mean to oppose something by arguing against it. object is used of a person's great dislike or hatred.

- I object to being called a liar.

protest is used for the act of presenting objections in speech, writing, or in an organized, public demonstration.

- There were several groups protesting the building of the airport.

Medical Dictionary

object

noun ob·ject \ ˈäb-(ˌ)jekt, -jikt \

medical Definition of object

1 : something material that may be perceived by the senses

2 : something mental or physical toward which thought, feeling, or action is directed

Law Dictionary

object

noun ob·ject \ ˈäb-jikt \

legal Definition of object

1 : something toward which thought, feeling, or action is directed — see also natural object

2 : the purpose or goal of something; especially, in the civil law of Louisiana : the purpose for which a contract or obligation is formed

object

transitive verb ob·ject \ əb-ˈjekt \

legal Definition of object

: to state in opposition or as an objection

objected that the evidence was inadmissible

intransitive verb

: to state opposition especially to something in a judicial proceeding

objected to the testimony on the ground that it was hearsay

Learn More about object

See words that rhyme with object Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for object Spanish Central: Translation of object Nglish: Translation of object for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of object for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about object

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object

Definition of object

objectless

objectlessness

From the M-W Editors

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object Synonyms

Synonyms

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Synonym Discussion of object

object

Definition of object

objector

Examples of object in a Sentence

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Origin and Etymology of object

object Synonyms

Synonyms

Related Words

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object

Definition of object

Recent Examples of object from the Web

First Known Use of object

Phrases Related to OBJECT

Related Phrases

OBJECT Defined for English Language Learners

object

Definition of object for English Language Learners

object

Definition of object for English Language Learners

OBJECT Defined for Kids

object

Definition of object for Students

object

Definition of object for Students

Synonym Discussion of object

Medical Dictionary

object

medical Definition of object

Law Dictionary

object

legal Definition of object

object

legal Definition of object

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