Definition Definition

simple - Meaning and Examples

Meaning of 'simple' (Webster Dictionary)

1 . Simple [ a.]
- Single; not complex; not infolded or entangled; uncombined; not compounded; not blended with something else; not complicated; as, a simple substance; a simple idea; a simple sound; a simple machine; a simple problem; simple tasks.
- Plain; unadorned; as, simple dress.
- Mere; not other than; being only.
- Not given to artifice, stratagem, or duplicity; undesigning; sincere; true.
- Artless in manner; unaffected; unconstrained; natural; inartificial;; straightforward.
- Direct; clear; intelligible; not abstruse or enigmatical; as, a simple statement; simple language.
- Weak in intellect; not wise or sagacious; of but moderate understanding or attainments; hence, foolish; silly.
- Not luxurious; without much variety; plain; as, a simple diet; a simple way of living.
- Humble; lowly; undistinguished.
- Without subdivisions; entire; as, a simple stem; a simple leaf.
- Not capable of being decomposed into anything more simple or ultimate by any means at present known; elementary; thus, atoms are regarded as simple bodies. Cf. Ultimate, a.
- Homogenous.
- Consisting of a single individual or zooid; as, a simple ascidian; -- opposed to compound.
- Something not mixed or compounded.
- A medicinal plant; -- so called because each vegetable was supposed to possess its particular virtue, and therefore to constitute a simple remedy.
- A drawloom.
- A part of the apparatus for raising the heddles of a drawloom.
- A feast which is not a double or a semidouble.
2 . Simple [ v. i.]
- To gather simples, or medicinal plants.

Meaning of 'simple' (Princeton's WordNet)

1 . simple [ a]
Meaning (1):
- having few parts; not complex or complicated or involved
Example in sentence:
  • a simple design;
  • a simple problem;
  • a simple substance;
  • simple mechanisms
2 . simple [ s]
Meaning (2):
- unornamented
Example in sentence:
  • a simple country schoolhouse;
  • her black dress--simple to austerity
Meaning (3):
- easy and not involved or complicated
Example in sentence:
  • a simple game;
  • an elementary problem in statistics;
  • elementary, my dear Watson;
  • found an uncomplicated solution to the problem
Meaning (4):
- exhibiting childlike simplicity and credulity
Example in sentence:
  • childlike trust;
  • dewy-eyed innocence;
  • listened in round-eyed wonder
Meaning (5):
- apart from anything else; without additions or modifications
Example in sentence:
  • only the bare facts;
  • shocked by the mere idea;
  • the simple passage of time was enough;
  • the simple truth