direction

[dih-rek-shuh n, dahy-] /dɪˈrɛk ʃən, ˈdaɪ-/
noun
1.
the act or an instance of directing.
2.
the line along which anything lies, faces, moves, etc., with reference to the point or region toward which it is directed:
The storm moved in a northerly direction.
3.
the point or region itself:
The direction is north.
4.
a position on a line extending from a specific point toward a point of the compass or toward the nadir or the zenith.
5.
a line of thought or action or a tendency or inclination:
the direction of contemporary thought.
6.
Usually, directions. instruction or guidance for making, using, etc.:
directions for baking a cake.
7.
order; command.
8.
management; control; guidance; supervision:
a company under good direction.
9.
a directorate.
10.
the name and address of the intended recipient as written on a letter, package, etc.
11.
decisions in a stage or film production as to stage business, speaking of lines, lighting, and general presentation.
12.
the technique, act, or business of making such decisions, managing and training a cast of actors, etc.
13.
the technique, act, or business of directing an orchestra, concert, or other musical presentation or group.
14.
Music. a symbol or phrase that indicates in a score the proper tempo, style of performance, mood, etc.
15.
a purpose or orientation toward a goal that serves to guide or motivate; focus:
He doesn't seem to have any direction in life.
Origin
1375-1425; late Middle English direccioun (< Middle French) < Latin dīrēctiōn- (stem of dīrēctiō) arranging in line, straightening. See direct, -ion
Related forms
directionless, adjective
predirection, noun
self-direction, noun
superdirection, noun
Synonyms
5. See tendency.
Examples from the web for directions
  • Read aloud the directions and go over the provided answer.
  • Preview the worksheet by reading aloud the directions.
  • These flow in opposite directions around the circuit.
  • Retiring boomers will squeeze the economy from two directions.
  • None have been in government before and they are pulling in different directions.
  • The government is suddenly paying attention-but its urge to regulate is pulling it in two different directions.
  • The directions were too nuanced for currency traders to heed.
  • Another problem is that disruptive technologies often come at the world from unlikely directions.
  • Economics is producing a torrent of research, coursing in all directions.
  • In future, he thinks, medical knowledge will increasingly flow in many directions.
British Dictionary definitions for directions

directions

/dɪˈrɛkʃənz; daɪ-/
plural noun
1.
(sometimes sing) instructions for doing something or for reaching a place

direction

/dɪˈrɛkʃən; daɪ-/
noun
1.
the act of directing or the state of being directed
2.
management, control, or guidance
3.
the work of a stage or film director
4.
the course or line along which a person or thing moves, points, or lies
5.
the course along which a ship, aircraft, etc, is travelling, expressed as the angle between true or magnetic north and an imaginary line through the main fore-and-aft axis of the vessel
6.
the place towards which a person or thing is directed
7.
a line of action; course
8.
the name and address on a letter, parcel, etc
9.
(music) the process of conducting an orchestra, choir, etc
10.
(music) an instruction in the form of a word or symbol heading or occurring in the body of a passage, movement, or piece to indicate tempo, dynamics, mood, etc
11.
(modifier) (maths)
  1. (of an angle) being any one of the three angles that a line in space makes with the three positive directions of the coordinate axes. Usually given as α, β, and γ with respect to the x-, y-, and z-axes
  2. (of a cosine) being the cosine of any of the direction angles
See also directions
Word Origin and History for directions
n.

"instructions on how to get somewhere," 1590s, plural of direction (q.v.).

direction

n.

c.1400, "orderly arrangement;" c.1500 as "action of directing," from Latin directionem (nominative directio), noun of action from past participle stem of dirigere (see direct (v.)). Meaning "course pursued by a moving object" is from 1660s. Related: Directional.

Idioms and Phrases with directions

direction

see: step in the right direction