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original - Meaning and Examples

Meaning of 'original' (Webster Dictionary)

1 . Original [ a.]
- Pertaining to the origin or beginning; preceding all others; first in order; primitive; primary; pristine; as, the original state of man; the original laws of a country; the original inventor of a process.
- Not copied, imitated, or translated; new; fresh; genuine; as, an original thought; an original process; the original text of Scripture.
- Having the power to suggest new thoughts or combinations of thought; inventive; as, an original genius.
- Before unused or unknown; new; as, a book full of original matter.
2 . Original [ n.]
- Origin; commencement; source.
- That which precedes all others of its class; archetype; first copy; hence, an original work of art, manuscript, text, and the like, as distinguished from a copy, translation, etc.
- An original thinker or writer; an originator.
- A person of marked eccentricity.
- The natural or wild species from which a domesticated or cultivated variety has been derived; as, the wolf is thought by some to be the original of the dog, the blackthorn the original of the plum.

Meaning of 'original' (Princeton's WordNet)

1 . original [ n]
Meaning (1):
- something that serves as a model or a basis for making copies
Example in sentence:
  • this painting is a copy of the original
2 . original [ a]
Meaning (2):
- being or productive of something fresh and unusual; or being as first made or thought of
Example in sentence:
  • a truly original approach;
  • an original mind;
  • with original music
3 . original [ s]
Meaning (3):
- not derived or copied or translated from something else
Example in sentence:
  • he kept the original copy and gave her only a xerox;
  • the play is original; not an adaptation;
  • the translation misses much of the subtlety of the original French
Meaning (4):
- (of e.g. information) not secondhand or by way of something intermediary
Example in sentence:
  • his work is based on only original, not secondary, sources
Meaning (5):
- preceding all others in time or being as first made or performed
Example in sentence:
  • restored the house to its original condition;
  • retracted his original statement;
  • the book still has its original binding;
  • the original cast;
  • the original inhabitants of the Americas;
  • the original performance of the opera

Nearby Words:

oricalche orichalceous orichalch oriel oriency orient oriental orientalism orientalist orientality

See 'original' also in:

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