Action

• POS: Interjection, Noun
• HYPHEN: ac=tion

CIDE DICTIONARY

Action, n. [OF. action, L. actio, fr. agere to do. See Act.].

•  A process or condition of acting or moving, as opposed to rest; the doing of something; exertion of power or force, as when one body acts on another; the effect of power exerted on one body by another; agency; activity; operation; as, the action of heat; a man of action.  [1913 Webster]

  "One wise in council, one in action brave."  [1913 Webster]
•  An act; a thing done; a deed; an enterprise. (pl.): Habitual deeds; hence, conduct; behavior; demeanor.  [1913 Webster]

  "The Lord is a Good of knowledge, and by him actions are weighed."  [1913 Webster]
•  The event or connected series of events, either real or imaginary, forming the subject of a play, poem, or other composition; the unfolding of the drama of events.  [1913 Webster]
•  Movement; as, the horse has a spirited action.  [1913 Webster]
•  Effective motion; also, mechanism; as, the breech action of a gun.  [1913 Webster]
•  Any one of the active processes going on in an organism; the performance of a function; as, the action of the heart, the muscles, or the gastric juice.  [1913 Webster]
•  Gesticulation; the external deportment of the speaker, or the suiting of his attitude, voice, gestures, and countenance, to the subject, or to the feelings.  [1913 Webster]
•  The attitude or position of the several parts of the body as expressive of the sentiment or passion depicted.  [1913 Webster]
•  A suit or process, by which a demand is made of a right in a court of justice; in a broad sense, a judicial proceeding for the enforcement or protection of a right, the redress or prevention of a wrong, or the punishment of a public offense.  [1913 Webster]
•  A share in the capital stock of a joint-stock company, or in the public funds; hence, in the plural, equivalent to stocks.  [1913 Webster]

  "The Euripus of funds and actions."  [1913 Webster]
•  An engagement between troops in war, whether on land or water; a battle; a fight; as, a general action, a partial action.  [1913 Webster]
•  The mechanical contrivance by means of which the impulse of the player's finger is transmitted to the strings of a pianoforte or to the valve of an organ pipe.  Grove.  [1913 Webster]

  "To poke the fire is an act, to reconcile friends who have quarreled is a praiseworthy action."  [1913 Webster]

Chose in action. (Law) See Chose. -- Quantity of action (Physics), the product of the mass of a body by the space it runs through, and its velocity.

Syn. -- Action, Act.

OXFORD DICTIONARY

Action, n. & v.
--n.
1 the fact or process of doing or acting (demanded action; put ideas into action).
2 forcefulness or energy as a characteristic (a woman of action).
3 the exertion of energy or influence (the action of acid on metal).
4 something done; a deed or act (not aware of his own actions).
5 a a series of events represented in a story, play, etc. b sl. exciting activity (arrived late and missed the action; want some action).
6 a armed conflict; fighting (killed in action). b an occurrence of this, esp. a minor military engagement.
7 a the way in which a machine, instrument, etc. works (explain the action of an air pump). b the mechanism that makes a machine, instrument, etc. (e.g. a musical instrument, a gun, etc.) work. c the mode or style of movement of an animal or human (usu. described in some way) (a runner with good action).
8 a legal process; a lawsuit (bring an action).
9 (in imper.) a word of command to begin, esp. used by a film director etc.
--v.tr. bring a legal action against.

Idiom

action committee (or group etc.) a body formed to take active steps, esp. in politics. action-packed colloq. full of action or excitement. action painting an aspect of abstract expressionism with paint applied by the artist's random or spontaneous gestures. action point a proposal for action, esp. arising from a discussion etc. action replay a playback of part of a television broadcast, esp. a sporting event, often in slow motion. action stations positions taken up by troops etc. ready for battle. go into action start work. out of action not working. take action begin to act (esp. energetically in protest).

Etymology

ME f. OF f. L actio -onis (as ACT)

THESAURUS

Action

accomplished fact, accomplishment, achievement, act, acta, actions, activeness, activism, activity, acts, ad hoc measure, address, adventure, aerial combat, affectation, affray, agency, air, amphibious operations, anagnorisis, angle, answer, architectonics, architecture, argument, armored combat, artifice, atmosphere, automatic control, award, background, ball, battle, battle royal, bearing, behavior, behavior pattern, behavioral norm, behavioral science, big time, blow, brush, bullfight, business, carriage, cascade control, case, catastrophe, cause, cause in court, characterization, clash, clash of arms, clockworks, cockfight, color, combat, combined operations, complication, comportment, condemnation, conduct, conflict, consideration, continuity, contrivance, control action, countermove, coup, course of action, culture pattern, custom, dealings, decision, decree, deed, deliverance, demarche, demeanor, denouement, deportment, design, determination, development, device, diagnosis, dictum, direction, discharge, dodge, dogfight, doing, doings, doom, drive train, driving, dry run, effect, effectiveness, effectuation, effort, electronic control, embroilment, encounter, endeavor, energy, engagement, enterprise, episode, exchange of blows, execution, exercise, exertion, expedient, exploit, fable, fait accompli, falling action, feat, feedback control, fight, fighting, finding, fire fight, fluid operations, folkway, force, fray, fulfillment, fun, fun and games, function, functioning, funmaking, game, gear, gest, gestures, gimmick, go, goings-on, good time, great fun, ground combat, guise, hand, hand-to-hand combat, hand-to-hand fight, handiwork, handling, high old time, high time, house-to-house combat, improvisation, incident, influence, initiative, innards, job, judicial process, jury-rig, jury-rigged expedient, last expedient, last resort, last shift, laughs, lawsuit, legal action, legal case, legal proceedings, legal process, legal remedy, line, litigation, liveliness, local color, logistics, lovely time, machinery, maintien, makeshift, management, maneuver, maneuvers, manipulation, manner, manners, means, measure, mechanism, method, methodology, methods, mien, militancy, military operations, minor operations, mission, modus vivendi, mood, motif, motion, motions, move, movement, movements, moves, mythos, naval combat, observable behavior, occupation, operancy, operation, operations, order, overseas operations, overt act, passage, passage of arms, pattern, performance, performing, peripeteia, picnic, pis aller, pitched battle, plan, play, pleasant time, plot, poise, political activism, port, pose, posture, power, power train, practice, praxis, precedent, presence, procedure, proceeding, proceedings, process, production, prognosis, pronouncement, prosecution, quarrel, reaction, recognition, remedy, res gestae, resolution, resort, resource, responsibility, rising action, robot control, ruling, rumble, running, running fight, scheme, scramble, scrimmage, scuffle, secondary plot, sentence, servo control, servomechanism, shake-up, shift, shoving match, skirmish, slant, social science, solution, sortie, spirit, sport, staff work, stand-up fight, steering, step, stir, stopgap, story, stratagem, street fight, strength, stroke, stroke of policy, structure, struggle, stunt, style, subject, subplot, suit, suit at law, supervisory control, switch, tactic, tactics, tauromachy, temporary expedient, thematic development, theme, thing, thing done, tone, topic, tour de force, transaction, trick, trump, tug-of-war, turn, tussle, twist, undertaking, verdict, vigor, vim, vitality, war game, war plans, watchworks, way, way of life, ways, wheels, wheels within wheels, work, working, working hypothesis, working proposition, workings, works

ROGET THESAURUS

Action

Action

N action, performance, doing perpetration, exercise, excitation, movement, operation, evolution, work, labor, praxis, execution, procedure, handicraft, business, agency, deed, act, overt act, stitch, touch, gest transaction, job, doings, dealings, proceeding, measure, step, maneuver, bout, passage, move, stroke, blow, coup, coup de main, coup d'etat, tour de force, feat, exploit, achievement, handiwork, workmanship, manufacture, stroke of policy, actor, doing, acting, in action, in harness, on duty, in operation, in the act, in the midst of, in the thick of, red-handed, in flagrante delicto, while one's hand is in, action is eloquence, actions speak louder than words, actum aiunt ne agas, awake, arise, or be forever fall'n, dii pia facta vident, faire sans dire, fare fac, fronte capillata post est occasio calva, our deeds are sometimes better than our thoughts, the great end of life is not knowledge but action, thought is the soul of act, vivre-ce nest pas respirer c'est agir, we live in deeds not years.

Contention

N contention, strife, contest, contestation, struggle, belligerency, opposition, controversy, polemics, debate, war of words, logomachy, litigation, paper war, high words, sparring, competition, rivalry, corrivalry, corrivalship, agonism, concours, match, race, horse racing, heat, steeple chase, handicap, regatta, field day, sham fight, Derby day, turf, sporting, bullfight, tauromachy, gymkhana, boat race, torpids, wrestling, greco-roman wrestling, pugilism, boxing, fisticuffs, the manly art of self-defense, spar, mill, set-to, round, bout, event, prize fighting, quarterstaff, single stick, gladiatorship, gymnastics, jiujitsu, jujutsu, kooshti, sumo, athletics, athletic sports, games of skill, shindy, fracas, clash of arms, tussle, scuffle, broil, fray, affray, affrayment, velitation, colluctation, luctation, brabble, brigue, scramble, melee, scrimmage, stramash, bushfighting, free fight, stand up fight, hand to hand, running fight, conflict, skirmish, rencounter, encounter, rencontre, collision, affair, brush, fight, battle, battle royal, combat, action, engagement, joust, tournament, tilt, tilting, tournay, list, pitched battle, death struggle, struggle for life or death, life or death struggle, Armageddon, hard knocks, sharp contest, tug of war, naval engagement, naumachia, sea fight, duel, duello, single combat, monomachy, satisfaction, passage d'armes, passage of arms, affair of honor, triangular duel, hostile meeting, digladiation, deeds of arms, feats of arms, appeal to arms, pugnacity, combativeness, bone of contention, contending, together by the ears, at loggerheads, at war, at issue, competitive, rival, belligerent, contentious, combative, bellicose, unpeaceful, warlike, quarrelsome, pugnacious, pugilistic, gladiatorial, palestric, palestrical, a verbis ad verbera, a word and a blow, a very pretty quarrel as it stands, commune periculum concordiam parit, lis litem generat.

Lawsuit

N lawsuit, suit, action, cause, litigation, suit in law, dispute, citation, arraignment, prosecution, impeachment, accusation, presentment, true bill, indictment, apprehension, arrest, committal, imprisonment, writ, summons, subpoena, latitat, nisi prius, venire, venire facias pleadings, declaration, bill, claim, proces verbal, bill of right, information, corpus delicti, affidavit, state of facts, answer, reply, replication, plea, demurrer, rebutter, rejoinder, surrebutter, surrejoinder, suitor, party to a suit, plaintiff, defendant, litigant, hearing, trial, verdict, appeal, appeal motion, writ of error, certiorari, case, decision, precedent, decided case, reports (legal reference works, see reference books), litigious, qui tam, coram judice, sub judice, pendente lite, adhuc sub judice lis est, accedas ad curiam, transeat in exemplum.

Agency

N agency, operation, force, working, strain, function, office, maintenance, exercise, work, swing, play, interworking, interaction, procurement, causation, instrumentality, influence, action, modus operandi, quickening power, maintaining power, sustaining power, home stroke, operative, efficient, efficacious, practical, effectual, at work, on foot, acting, in operation, in force, in action, in play, in exercise, acted upon, wrought upon, by the agency of through, by means of, I myself must mix with action lest I wither by des.