Control

• POS: Noun, Verb (usu participle)
• HYPHEN: con=trol

CIDE DICTIONARY

Control, n. [F. contrôle a counter register, contr. fr. contr-rôle; contre (L. contra) + rôle roll, catalogue. See Counter and Roll, and cf. Counterroll.].

•  A duplicate book, register, or account, kept to correct or check another account or register; a counter register.  Johnson.  [1913 Webster]
•  That which serves to check, restrain, or hinder; restraint.  Dryden.  [1913 Webster]
•  Power or authority to check or restrain; restraining or regulating influence; superintendence; government; as, children should be under parental control.  [1913 Webster]

  "The House of Commons should exercise a control over all the departments of the executive administration."  [1913 Webster]
•  The complete apparatus used to control a mechanism or machine in operation, as a flying machine in flight;  [Webster 1913 Suppl.]
•  Any of the physical factors determining the climate of any particular place, as latitude,distribution of land and water, altitude, exposure, prevailing winds, permanent high- or low-barometric-pressure areas, ocean currents, mountain barriers, soil, and vegetation.  [Webster 1913 Suppl.]
•  in research, an object or subject used in an experimental procedure, which is treated identically to the primary subject of the experiment, except for the omission of the specific treatment or conditions whose effect is being investigated. If the control is a group of living organisms, as is common in medical research, it is called the control group.

  " For most experimental procedures, the results are not considered valid and reliable unless a proper control experiment is performed. There are various types of control used in experimental science, and often several groups of subjects serve as controls, being subjected to different variations of the experimental procedure, or controlling for several variables being tested. When the effects caused by an experimental treatment are not consistent and obvious, statistical analysis of the results is typically used to determine if there are any significant differences between the effects of different experimental conditions."  [PJC]
•  the part of an experimental procedure in which the controls{6} are subjected to the experimental conditions.  [PJC]
•  the group of technical specialists exercising control by remote communications over a distant operation, such as a space flight; as, the American Mission Control for manned flights is located in Houston.  [PJC]

Board of control. See under Board.

Control, v. t. [F. contrôler, fr. contrôle.].

•  To check by a counter register or duplicate account; to prove by counter statements; to confute.  [1913 Webster]

  "This report was controlled to be false."  [1913 Webster]
•  To exercise restraining or governing influence over; to check; to counteract; to restrain; to regulate; to govern; to overpower.  [1913 Webster]

  "Give me a staff of honor for mine age,
  But not a scepter to control the world."  [1913 Webster]

  "I feel my virtue struggling in my soul:
  But stronger passion does its power control."
•  to assure the validity of an experimental procedure by using a control{7}.  [PJC]

Syn. -- To restrain; rule; govern; manage; guide; regulate; hinder; direct; check; curb; counteract; subdue.

OXFORD DICTIONARY

Control, n. & v.
--n.
1 the power of directing, command (under the control of).
2 the power of restraining, esp. self-restraint.
3 a means of restraint; a check.
4 (usu. in pl.) a means of regulating prices etc.
5 (usu. in pl.) switches and other devices by which a machine, esp. an aircraft or vehicle, is controlled (also attrib. : control panel; control room).
6 a a place where something is controlled or verified. b a person or group that controls something.
7 a standard of comparison for checking the results of a survey or experiment.
--v.tr. (controlled, controlling)
1 have control or command of; dominate.
2 exert control over; regulate.
3 hold in check; restrain (told him to control himself).
4 serve as control to.
5 check, verify.

Idiom

controlling interest a means of determining the policy of a business etc., esp. by ownership of a majority of the stock. control rod a rod of neutron-absorbing material used to vary the output power of a nuclear reactor. control tower a tall building at an airport etc. from which air traffic is controlled. in control (often foll. by of) directing an activity. out of control no longer subject to containment, restraint, or guidance. under control being controlled; in order.

Derivative

controllable adj. controllability n. controllably adv.

Etymology

ME f. AF contreroller keep a copy of a roll of accounts, f. med.L contrarotulare (as CONTRA-, rotulus ROLL n.): (n.) perh. f. F contr{ocirc}le

THESAURUS

Control

Masan, R and D, abate, ability, abnegation, absolutism, abstinence, acme, action, address, adeptness, administration, adroitness, airmanship, allay, alleviate, ancestral spirits, angel, aplomb, apparition, appearance, arrest, arrestation, artfulness, artisanship, artistry, ascendancy, assuage, astral, astral spirit, attemper, attendant godling, authority, authorization, automatic control, bank the fire, banshee, barnstorm, be responsible for, be-all and end-all, blue ribbon, blunt, bond service, bondage, bravura, bridle, brilliance, button, call the shots, call the signals, calm, calmness, capability, capacity, captain, captivity, carry authority, carry on, cascade control, championship, charge, charisma, charm, chasten, check, claws, cleverness, clout, clutches, collect, command, competence, composure, conduct, consequence, conservatism, constrain, constraint, contain, continence, control action, control experiment, controlled experiment, cool, cool off, cooling, cooling down, cooling off, coordination, copilot, crack the whip, craft, craftsmanship, credit, cunning, curb, curtail, curtailment, cut and try, daemon, damp, dampen, de-emphasize, deaden, debt slavery, decelerate, deceleration, decide, deftness, demon, departed spirit, deprivation of freedom, determine, device, dexterity, dexterousness, dextrousness, dial, diminish, diplomacy, direct, direction, directorship, discipline, disembodied spirit, disenfranchisement, disfranchisement, dispassion, dispose, disposition, dominance, dominate, domination, dominion, dompt, downplay, drive, dull, duppy, dybbuk, effect, effectiveness, efficiency, eidolon, electronic control, eminence, empery, empire, empiricism, enchantment, engineer, enjoin, enslavement, enthrallment, esteem, evenness, experiment, experimental design, experimental method, experimental proof, experimentalism, experimentation, expertise, extenuate, facility, fairy godmother, familiar, familiar spirit, favor, feedback control, feudalism, feudality, finesse, first place, first prize, fly, force, form, genius, genius domus, genius loci, gentleness, ghost, golden mean, good angel, good feeling, good genius, govern, governance, government, grace, grasp, grateful dead, grip, gripe, guard, guardian, guardian angel, guardian spirit, guidance, guide, hand, handiness, handle, handling, hands, hant, happy medium, haunt, have clout, have control of, have in hand, have power, have the power, have the right, have the say, have under control, head, head up, headship, hegemony, height, helm, helotism, helotry, highest, hinder, hindrance, hit and miss, hold, hold at bay, hold back, hold fast, hold in, hold in check, hold in hand, hold in leash, hold the helm, hold the reins, hold up, horsemanship, household gods, husbandry, idolum, immateriality, impartiality, imperium, importance, incidental power, incorporeal, incorporeal being, incorporeity, indentureship, independence, influence, influentiality, ingeniousness, ingenuity, inhibit, inhibition, injunction, insinuation, interdict, invisible helper, iron hand, judiciousness, jurisdiction, juste-milieu, keep, keep back, keep from, keep in, keep in check, keep under control, keep within bounds, kingship, knob, know-how, lares and penates, lares compitales, lares familiaris, lares permarini, lares praestites, lares viales, larva, lay, lay under restraint, lead, lead on, leadership, leading, legal restraint, lemures, lenify, lenity, lessen, lever, leverage, lighten, lordship, magnetism, make the rules, manage, management, managery, managing, manes, maneuver, manipulate, manipulation, marksmanship, master, mastermind, mastership, mastery, materialization, maximum, mechanism, meden agan, middle way, might, mildness, ministering angel, mitigate, moderate, moderateness, moderation, moderationism, modulate, moment, monopoly, most, ne plus ultra, neutrality, new high, noble experiment, nonviolence, nothing in excess, numen, obtund, officer, oni, order, ordering, oversee, oversight, pacifism, palliate, palms, paramountcy, peel off, penates, peonage, personality, persuasion, phantom, pilot, pilotage, play down, poltergeist, possess authority, possession, potency, power, practical ability, pragmatism, predominance, preponderance, prescribe, presence, presidency, pressure, prestige, primacy, proficiency, prohibit, prohibition, protection, protectionism, protective tariff, prowess, prudence, pull, pull in, pull the strings, purchase, put down, quarterback, quickness, raj, rationing, readiness, record, reduce, reduce the temperature, regnancy, regulate, regulation, reign, rein, rein in, reins of government, repose, repress, repute, research and development, resource, resourcefulness, restrain, restraint, restraint of trade, retard, retardation, retrench, retrenchment, revenant, robot control, rule, rule of thumb, run, running, savoir-faire, savvy, say, seamanship, self-abnegation, self-command, self-conquest, self-control, self-denial, self-discipline, self-government, self-mastery, self-possession, self-restraint, serenity, serfdom, serfhood, servility, servitude, servo control, set back, shade, shadow, shape, shrouded spirit, skill, skillfulness, skipper, slacken, slavery, slow down, slowing down, smother, snub, sober, sober down, sobriety, soften, solo, sovereignty, special providence, specter, spectral ghost, spirit, spook, sprite, stability, steadiness, steer, steerage, steering, stifle, straiten, strings, style, suasion, subdue, subjection, subjugation, subtle influence, suggestion, supervise, supervision, supervisory control, suppress, supremacy, sway, switch, tact, tactfulness, take command, take in hand, take the lead, talons, tame, tariff wall, technical brilliance, technical mastery, technical skill, technique, temper, temperance, temperateness, tentative method, tentativeness, testing, the conn, the helm, the wheel, theophany, thought control, thrall, thralldom, timing, tone down, top spot, totem, tranquillity, trial, trial and error, trying, tune down, tutelar god, tutelary, tyranny, underplay, unexcessiveness, unextravagance, unextremeness, unsubstantiality, upper hand, vassalage, via media, villenage, virtuosity, vision, walking dead man, wandering soul, weaken, wear the pants, weight, whip hand, wield authority, wit, withhold, wizardry, workmanship, wraith, zenith, zombie

ROGET THESAURUS

Control

Direction

N direction, management, managery, government, gubernation, conduct, legislation, regulation, guidance, bossism, legislature, steerage, pilotage, reins, reins of government, helm, rudder, needle, compass, guiding star, load star, lode star, pole star, cynosure, supervision, superintendence, surveillance, oversight, eye of the master, control, charge, board of control, command, premiership, senatorship, director, chair, portfolio, statesmanship, statecraft, kingcraft, queencraft, ministry, ministration, administration, stewardship, proctorship, agency, director, directing, hegemonic, at the helm, at the head of, direction, bearing, course, vector, set, drift, tenor, tendency, incidence, bending, trending, dip, tack, aim, collimation, steering steerage, point of the compass, cardinal points, North East, South, West, N by E, ENE, NE by N, NE, rhumb, azimuth, line of collimation, line, path, road, range, quarter, line of march, alignment, allignment, air line, beeline, straight shoot, directed, directed towards, pointing towards, bound for, aligned, with alligned with, direct, straight, undeviating, unswerving, straightforward, North, Northern, Northerly, towards, on the road, on the high road to, en avant, versus, to, hither, thither, whither, directly, straight as an arrow, forwards as an arrow, point blank, in a bee line to, in a direct line to, as the crow flies, in a straight line to, in a bee line for, in a direct line for, in a straight line for, in a bee line with, in a direct line with, in a straight line with, in a line with, full tilt at, as the crow flies, before the wind, near the wind, close to the wind, against the wind, windwards, in the wind's eye, through, via, by way of, in all directions, in all manner of ways, quaquaversum, from the four winds, the shortest distance between two points is a stra.

VB direct, manage, govern, conduct, order, prescribe, cut out work for, bead, lead, lead the way, show the way, take the lead, lead on, regulate, guide, steer, pilot, tackle, take the helm, be at the helm, have the reins, handle the reins, hold the reins, take the reins, drive, tool, superintend, supervise, overlook, control, keep in order, look after, see to, legislate for, administer, ministrate, matronize, have the care of, have the charge of, be in charge of, have charge of, take the direction, boss, boss one around, pull the strings, pull the wires, rule, have the direction, hold office, hold the portfolio, preside, preside at the board, take the chair, occupy the chair, be in the chair, pull the stroke oar, tend towards, bend towards, point towards, conduct to, go to, point to, point at, bend, trend, verge, incline, dip, determine, steer for, steer towards, make for, make towards, aim at, level at, take aim, keep a course, hold a course, be bound for, bend one's steps towards, direct one's course, steer one's course, bend one's course, shape one's course, align one's march, allign one's march, to straight, go straight to the point, march on, march on a point, ascertain one's direction, s'orienter, see which way the wind blows, box the compass, take the air line.

Opposition

VB oppose, counteract, run counter to, withstand, control, hinder, antagonize, oppugn, fly in the face of, go dead against, kick against, fall afoul of, run afoul of, set against, pit against, face, confront, cope with, make a stand, make a dead set against, set oneself against, set one's face against, protest against, vote against, raise one's voice against, disfavor, turn one's back upon, set at naught, slap in the face, slam the door in one's face, be at cross purposes, play at cross purposes, counterwork, countermine, thwart, overthwart, work against, undermine, stem, breast, encounter, stem the tide, breast the tide, stem the current, stem the flood, buffet the waves, beat up against, make head against, grapple with, kick against the pricks, contend, do battle with, do battle against, contradict, contravene, belie, go against, run against, beat against, militate against, come in conflict with, emulate, rival, spoil one's trade.

Authority

N authority, influence, patronage, power, preponderance, credit, prestige, prerogative, jurisdiction, right, direction, government, divine right, dynastic rights, authoritativeness, absoluteness, absolutism, despotism, jus nocendi, jus divinum, mastery, mastership, masterdom, dictation, control, hold, grasp, grip, gripe, reach, iron sway, fangs, clutches, talons, rod of empire, commission, deputy, permission, at the head, dominant, paramount, supreme, predominant, preponderant, in the ascendant, influential, arbitrary, compulsory, stringent, at one's command, in one's power, in one's grasp, under control, in the name of, by the authority of, de par le Roi, in virtue of, under the auspices of, in the hands of, at one's pleasure, by a dash if the pen, by a stroke of the pen, ex mero motu, ex cathedra, from the chair, the gray mare the better horse, every inch a king.

Government

N government, legal authority, soveriegn, sovereign authority, authority, master, direction, national government, nation, state, country, nation- state, dominion, republic, empire, union, democratic republic, kingdom, principality, state government, state, shire, province, county, canton, territory, duchy, archduchy, archdukedom, woiwodshaft, commonwealth, region, property, county, parish city, domain, tract, arrondissement, mofussil, commune, wappentake, hundred, riding, lathe, garth, soke, tithing, ward, precinct, bailiwick, command, empire, sway, rule, dominion, domination, sovereignty, supremacy, suzerainty, lordship, headship, chiefdom, seigniory, seigniority, rule, sway, command, control, administer, govern, lead, preside over, reign, possess the throne, be seated on the throne, occupy the throne, sway the scepter, wield the scepter, wear the crown, state, realm, body politic, posse comitatus, judicature, cabinet, seat of government, seat of authority, headquarters, accession, installation, politics, reign, regime, dynasty, directorship, dictatorship, protectorate, protectorship, caliphate, pashalic, electorate, presidency, presidentship, administration, proconsul, consulship, prefecture, seneschalship, magistrature, magistracy, monarchy, kinghood, kingship, royalty, regality, aristarchy, aristocracy, oligarchy, democracy, theocracy, demagogy, commonwealth, dominion, heteronomy, republic, republicanism, socialism, collectivism, mob law, mobocracy, ochlocracy, vox populi, imperium in imperio, bureaucracy, beadledom, bumbledom, stratocracy, military power, military government, junta, feodality, feudal system, feudalism, thearchy, theocracy, dinarchy, duarchy, triarchy, heterarchy, duumvirate, triumvirate, autocracy, autonomy, limited monarchy, constitutional government, constitutional monarchy, home rule, representative government, monocracy, pantisocracy, gynarchy, gynocracy, gynaeocracy, petticoat government, legislature, judiciary, administration, office of the president, office of the prime minister, cabinet, senate, house of representatives, parliament, council, courts, supreme court, state, interior, labor, health and human services, defense, education, agriculture, justice, commerce, treasury, Federal Bureau of Investigation, FBI, Central Intelligence Agency, CIA, National Institutes of Health, NIH, Postal Service, Post Office, Federal Aviation Administration, FAA, president, vice president, cabinet member, prime minister, minister, senator, representatative, president pro tem, speaker of the house, department head, section head, section chief, federal judge, justice, justice of the supreme court, chief justice, treasurer, secretary of the treasury, director of the FBI, governor, state cabinet member, state senator, assemblyman, assemblywoman, regal, sovereign, governing, royal, royalist, monarchical, kingly, imperial, imperiatorial, princely, feudal, aristocratic, autocratic, oligarchic, republican, dynastic, ruling, regnant, gubernatorial, imperious, authoritative, executive, administrative, clothed with authority, official, departmental, ex officio, imperative, peremptory, overruling, absolute, hegemonic, hegemonical, authorized, government, public, national, federal, his majesty's, her majesty's, state, county, city, N, a dog's obeyed in office, cada uno tiene su alguazil, le Roi le veut, regibus esse manus en nescio longas, regnant populi, the demigod Authority, the right divine of kings to govern wrong, uneasy lies the head that wears a crown.

Restraint

N restraint, hindrance, coercion, cohibition, constraint, repression, suppression, discipline, control, confinement, durance, duress, imprisonment, incarceration, coarctation, entombment, mancipation, durance vile, limbo, captivity, blockade, arrest, arrestation, custody, keep, care, charge, ward, restringency, curb, lettres de cachet, limitation, restriction, protection, monopoly, prohibition, prisoner, repressionist, restrained, constrained, imprisoned, pent up, jammed in, wedged in, under lock and key, under restraint, under hatches, in swaddling clothes, on parole, in custody, doing time, cohibitive, coactive, stiff, restringent, strait-laced, hidebound, barkbound, ice bound, wind bound, weather bound, cabined cribbed confined, in Lob's pound, laid by the heels.

VB restrain, check, put under restraint, lay under restraint, enthral, enthrall, inthral, inthrall, bethral, bethrall, restrict, debar, constrain, coerce, curb, control, hold back, hold from, hold in, hold in check, hold within bounds, keep back, keep from, keep in, keep in check, keep within bounds, hold in leash, hold in leading strings, withhold, keep under, repress, suppress, smother, pull in, rein in, hold, hold fast, keep a tight hand on, prohibit, inhibit, cohibit, enchain, fasten, fetter, shackle, entrammel, bridle, muzzle, hopple, gag, pinion, manacle, handcuff, tie one's hands, hobble, bind hand and foot, swathe, swaddle, pin down, tether, picket, tie down, tie up, secure, forge fetters, disable, hamstring (incapacitate), confine, shut up, shut in, clap up, lock up, box up, mew up, bottle up, cork up, seal up, button up, hem in, bolt in, wall in, rail in, impound, pen, coop, inclose, cage, incage, encage, close the door upon, cloister, imprison, immure, incarcerate, entomb, clap under hatches, lay under hatches, put in irons, put in a strait-waistcoat, throw into prison, cast into prison, put into bilboes, arrest, take up, take charge of, take into custody, take prisoner, take captive, make prisoner, make captive, captivate, lead captive, lead into captivity, send to prison, commit to prison, commit, give in charge, give in custody, subjugate.

Power

N power, potency, potentiality, jiva, puissance, might, force, energy, dint, right hand, right arm, ascendency, sway, control, prepotency, prepollence, almightiness, omnipotence, authority, strength, ability, ableness, competency, efficacy, efficiency, productivity, expertise (skill), validity, cogency, enablement, vantage ground, influence, pressure, conductivity, elasticity, gravity, electricity, magnetism, galvanism, voltaic electricity, voltaism, electromagnetism, atomic power, nuclear power, thermonuclear power, fuel cell, hydraulic power, water power, hydroelectric power, solar power, solar energy, solar panels, tidal power, wind power, attraction, vis inertiae, vis mortua, vis viva, potential energy, dynamic energy, dynamic friction, dynamic suction, live circuit, live rail, live wire, capability, capacity, quid valeant humeri quid ferre recusent, faculty, quality, attribute, endowment, virtue, gift, property, qualification, susceptibility, powerful, puissant, potential, capable, able, equal to, up to, cogent, valid, efficient, productive, effective, effectual, efficacious, adequate, competent, multipotent, plenipotent, omnipotent, almighty, forcible, (energetic), influential, productive, powerfully, by virtue of, by dint of, a toute force, dos moi pou sto kai kino ten gen, eripuit coelo fulmen sceptrumque tyrannis, fortis cadere cedere non potest.

Influence

N influence, importance, weight, pressure, preponderance, prevalence, sway, predominance, predominancy, ascendency, dominance, reign, control, domination, pull, authority, capability, effect, interest, synergy (cooperation), footing, purchase, play, leverage, vantage ground, tower of strength, host in himself, protection, patronage, auspices, influential, effective, important, weighty, prevailing, prevalent, rife, rampant, dominant, regnant, predominant, in the ascendant, hegemonical, with telling effect, tel maure tel valet.