option

[op-shuh n] /ˈɒp ʃən/
noun
1.
the power or right of choosing.
2.
something that may be or is chosen; choice.
3.
the act of choosing.
4.
an item of equipment or a feature that may be chosen as an addition to or replacement for standard equipment and features:
a car with a long list of extra-cost options; a telephoto lens option for a camera.
5.
stock option.
6.
a privilege acquired, as by the payment of a premium or consideration, of demanding, within a specified time, the carrying out of a transaction upon stipulated terms; the right, as granted in a contract or by an initial payment, of acquiring something in the future:
We bought one lot and took a 90-day option on an adjoining one.
7.
Football. a play in which a back has a choice of either passing or running with the ball.
verb (used with object)
8.
to acquire or grant an option on:
The studio has optioned his latest novel for film adaptation.
9.
to provide with optional equipment:
The car can be fully optioned at additional cost.
Origin
1595-1605; < Latin optiōn- (stem of optiō) choice, equivalent to op(tāre) to select (see opt) + -tiōn- -tion
Related forms
optionable, adjective
preoption, noun
Synonyms
2. See choice. 2, 3. selection, election.
Examples from the web for option
  • To me it seems that the first option isn't really free will as factors, such as the taste, are beyond my realm of choice.
  • There are ways to develop universal health care coverage that don't include a public option.
  • Investors pay for the call option by forgoing some interest on the debt.
  • Gas is an option for cutting power plant emissions and addressing global warming in the short term.
  • They can hide beneath vegetation, but that's not always an option.
  • Pound and brown the everyday bird into a versatile weeknight option.
  • Market-battered tech firms are increasingly doling out new stock option packages, but leaving executives out of the bounty.
  • Tax the employee on the value of the option when issued.
  • Students also have the option of living on campus during the summer.
  • What the diplomatic option needs, however, is a serious makeover.
British Dictionary definitions for option

option

/ˈɒpʃən/
noun
1.
the act or an instance of choosing or deciding
2.
the power or liberty to choose
3.
an exclusive opportunity, usually for a limited period, to buy something at a future date: he has a six-month option on the Canadian rights to this book
4.
(commerce) the right to buy (call option) or sell (put option) a fixed quantity of a commodity, security, foreign exchange, etc, at a fixed price at a specified date in the future See also traded option
5.
something chosen; choice
6.
(NZ) short for local option
7.
keep one's options open, leave one's options open, not to commit oneself
8.
See soft option
verb
9.
(transitive) to obtain or grant an option on
Word Origin
C17: from Latin optiō free choice, from optāre to choose
Word Origin and History for option
n.

c.1600, "action of choosing," from French option (Old French opcion), from Latin optionem (nominative optio) "choice, free choice, liberty to choose," from root of optare "to desire, choose," from PIE root *op- "to choose, prefer." Meaning "thing that may be chosen" is attested from 1885. Commercial transaction sense first recorded 1755 (the verb in this sense is from 1934). As a North American football play, it is recorded from 1954.

option in Technology


command line option