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| con·tact [ kón tàkt ] |
noun (plural con·tacts) |
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| Definition: |
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1. state of communication: a state or relationship in which communication happens or is possible
 Our only means of contact with the base was a small radio receiver.
 He made contact with his counterpart in the Tokyo office.
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2. act of communicating: an act of communicating with somebody
 All my contacts with her to date have been about business.
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3. physical connection: a situation in which two or more things or people actually touch or strike against one another
 White phosphorus ignites on contact with the air.
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4. interaction: a state in which somebody has access to and can be affected or influenced by people, situations, ideas, or information
 You'll come into contact with a variety of people.
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5. access arrangement: the right of a child and a separated or divorced parent to meet regularly
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6. somebody who can help: an acquaintance who may be socially or professionally helpful
 I made some very useful contacts at the trade fair.
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7. disease carrier: a person or animal seen as a possible carrier of an infectious disease
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8. device making electrical connection: a movable part that can be made to touch another conductive part in order to enable an electrical current to pass, e.g. a component of a switch
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9. electrical connection: a connection between or the connection of two or more electrical conductors so that current flows between them
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plural noun con·tacts |
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| Definition: |
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contact lenses: a set of contact lenses
(
informal
)
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verb (past and past participle con·tact·ed, present participle con·tact·ing, 3rd person present singular con·tacts) |
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| Definition: |
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1. transitive verb reach somebody for communication: to send a message to somebody, or reach somebody, e.g. by telephone or letter, in order to communicate
 You can contact me at this number.
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2. transitive and intransitive verb touch: to touch or strike against something
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adjective |
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| Definition: |
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1. used for communicating with somebody: used as a means to contact somebody
 a contact address
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2. working by touching: working or happening by touching or being touched by something or somebody
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3. caused by touch: caused by touching something that irritates
 contact dermatitis
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| [Early 17th century. < Latin contactus, past participle of contingere, literally "touch with" < tangere "to touch"] |
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