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use - Meaning and Examples

Meaning of 'use' (Webster Dictionary)

1 . Use [ v. i.]
- To be wont or accustomed; to be in the habit or practice; as, he used to ride daily; -- now disused in the present tense, perhaps because of the similarity in sound, between "use to," and "used to."
- To be accustomed to go; to frequent; to inhabit; to dwell; -- sometimes followed by of.
2 . Use [ v. t.]
- The act of employing anything, or of applying it to one's service; the state of being so employed or applied; application; employment; conversion to some purpose; as, the use of a pen in writing; his machines are in general use.
- Occasion or need to employ; necessity; as, to have no further use for a book.
- Yielding of service; advantage derived; capability of being used; usefulness; utility.
- Continued or repeated practice; customary employment; usage; custom; manner; habit.
- Common occurrence; ordinary experience.
- The special form of ritual adopted for use in any diocese; as, the Sarum, or Canterbury, use; the Hereford use; the York use; the Roman use; etc.
- The premium paid for the possession and employment of borrowed money; interest; usury.
- The benefit or profit of lands and tenements. Use imports a trust and confidence reposed in a man for the holding of lands. He to whose use or benefit the trust is intended shall enjoy the profits. An estate is granted and limited to A for the use of B.
- A stab of iron welded to the side of a forging, as a shaft, near the end, and afterward drawn down, by hammering, so as to lengthen the forging.
- To make use of; to convert to one's service; to avail one's self of; to employ; to put a purpose; as, to use a plow; to use a chair; to use time; to use flour for food; to use water for irrigation.
- To behave toward; to act with regard to; to treat; as, to use a beast cruelly.
- To practice customarily; to make a practice of; as, to use diligence in business.
- To accustom; to habituate; to render familiar by practice; to inure; -- employed chiefly in the passive participle; as, men used to cold and hunger; soldiers used to hardships and danger.

Meaning of 'use' (Princeton's WordNet)

1 . use [ n]
Meaning (1):
- what something is used for
Example in sentence:
  • ballet is beautiful but what use is it?;
  • the function of an auger is to bore holes
Meaning (2):
- a particular service
Example in sentence:
  • he put his knowledge to good use;
  • patrons have their uses
Meaning (3):
- the act of using
Example in sentence:
  • he warned against the use of narcotic drugs;
  • skilled in the utilization of computers
Meaning (4):
- exerting shrewd or devious influence especially for one's own advantage
Example in sentence:
  • his manipulation of his friends was scandalous
Meaning (5):
- (psychology) an automatic pattern of behavior in reaction to a specific situation; may be inherited or acquired through frequent repetition
Example in sentence:
  • long use had hardened him to it;
  • owls have nocturnal habits;
  • she had a habit twirling the ends of her hair
Meaning (6):
- (economics) the utilization of economic goods to satisfy needs or in manufacturing
Example in sentence:
  • the consumption of energy has increased steadily
Meaning (7):
- (law) the exercise of the legal right to enjoy the benefits of owning property
Example in sentence:
  • we were given the use of his boat
8 . use [ v]
Meaning (8):
- put into service; make work or employ for a particular purpose or for its inherent or natural purpose
Example in sentence:
  • Apply a magnetic field here;
  • He doesn't know how to use a computer;
  • How do you utilize this tool?;
  • I apply this rule to get good results;
  • I can't use this tool;
  • This thinking was applied to many projects;
  • use the plastic bags to store the food;
  • use your head!;
  • we only use Spanish at home
Meaning (9):
- avail oneself to
Example in sentence:
  • apply a principle;
  • practice a religion;
  • practice non-violent resistance;
  • use care when going down the stairs;
  • use your common sense
Meaning (10):
- habitually do something or be in a certan state or place (use only in the past tense)
Example in sentence:
  • I used to get sick when I ate in that dining hall;
  • she used to be his best friend and now they are enemies;
  • She used to call her mother every week but now she calls only occasionally;
  • They used to vacation in the Bahamas
Meaning (11):
- take or consume (regularly or habitually)
Example in sentence:
  • She uses drugs rarely
Meaning (12):
- seek or achieve an end by using to one's advantage
Example in sentence:
  • She uses her influential friends to get jobs;
  • The president's wife used her good connections
Meaning (13):
- use up, consume fully
Example in sentence:
  • The legislature expended its time on school questions

Nearby Words:

used useful usefully usefulness useless user

See 'use' also in:

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