Straight

• POS: Adjective, Noun, Adverb

CIDE DICTIONARY

Straight, a. 

 A variant of Strait, a.  [1913 Webster]
"Egypt is a long country, but it is straight, that is to say, narrow."  [1913 Webster]

Straight, a. [OE. streit, properly p. p. of strecchen to stretch, AS. streht, p. p. of streccan to stretch, to extend. See Stretch.].

•  Right, in a mathematical sense; passing from one point to another by the nearest course; direct; not deviating or crooked; as, a straight line or course; a straight piece of timber.  [1913 Webster]

  "And the crooked shall be made straight."  [1913 Webster]

  "There are many several sorts of crooked lines, but there is only one which is straight."  [1913 Webster]
•  Approximately straight; not much curved; as, straight ribs are such as pass from the base of a leaf to the apex, with a small curve.  [1913 Webster]
•  Composed of cards which constitute a regular sequence, as the ace, king, queen, jack, and ten-spot; as, a straight hand; a straight flush.  [1913 Webster]
•  Conforming to justice and rectitude; not deviating from truth or fairness; upright; as, straight dealing.  [1913 Webster]
•  Unmixed; undiluted; as, to take liquor straight.  [1913 Webster]
•  Making no exceptions or deviations in one's support of the organization and candidates of a political party; as, a straight Republican; a straight Democrat; also, containing the names of all the regularly nominated candidates of a party and no others; as, a straight ballot.  [1913 Webster]

Straight arch (Arch.), a form of arch in which the intrados is straight, but with its joints drawn radially, as in a common arch. -- A straight face, one giving no evidence of merriment or other emotion. -- A straight line. “That which lies evenly between its extreme points.” Euclid. “The shortest line between two points.” Chauvenet. “A line which has the same direction through its whole length.” Newcomb. -- Straight-way valve, a valve which, when opened widely, affords a straight passageway, as for water.

Straight, adv. 

 In a straight manner; directly; rightly; forthwith; immediately; as, the arrow went straight to the mark.  Shak.  [1913 Webster]
"I know thy generous temper well;
Fling but the appearance of dishonor on it,
It straight takes fire, and mounts into a blaze."  [1913 Webster]
"Everything was going on straight."  [1913 Webster]

Straight, n. 

 A hand of five cards in consecutive order as to value; a sequence. When they are of one suit, it is calles straight flush.  [1913 Webster]

Straight, v. t. 

 To straighten.  A Smith.  [1913 Webster]

OXFORD DICTIONARY

Straight, adj., n., & adv.
--adj.
1 a extending uniformly in the same direction; without a curve or bend etc. b Geom. (of a line) lying on the shortest path between any two of its points.
2 successive, uninterrupted (three straight wins).
3 in proper order or place or condition; duly arranged; level, symmetrical (is the picture straight?; put things straight).
4 honest, candid; not evasive (a straight answer).
5 (of thinking etc.) logical, unemotional.
6 (of drama etc.) serious as opposed to popular or comic; employing the conventional techniques of its art form.
7 a unmodified. b (of a drink) undiluted.
8 colloq. (of music) classical.
9 colloq. a (of a person etc.) conventional or respectable. b heterosexual.
10 (of an arch) flat-topped.
11 (of a person's back) not bowed.
12 (of the hair) not curly or wavy.
13 (of a knee) not bent.
14 (of the legs) not bandy or knock-kneed.
15 (of a garment) not flared.
16 coming direct from its source.
17 (of an aim, look, blow, or course) going direct to the mark.
--n.
1 the straight part of something, esp. the concluding stretch of a racecourse.
2 a straight condition.
3 a sequence of five cards in poker.
4 colloq. a conventional person; a heterosexual.
--adv.
1 in a straight line; direct; without deviation or hesitation or circumlocution (came straight from Paris; I told them straight).
2 in the right direction, with a good aim (shoot straight).
3 correctly (can't see straight).
4 archaic at once or immediately.

Idiom

go straight live an honest life after being a criminal. the straight and narrow morally correct behaviour. straight angle an angle of 180(0). straight away at once; immediately. straight-bred not cross-bred. straight-cut (of tobacco) cut lengthwise into long silky fibres. straight-edge a bar with one edge accurately straight, used for testing. straight-eight
1 an internal-combustion engine with eight cylinders in line.
2 a vehicle having this. straight eye the ability to detect deviation from the straight. straight face an intentionally expressionless face, esp. avoiding a smile though amused. straight-faced having a straight face. straight fight Brit. Polit. a direct contest between two candidates. straight flush see FLUSH(3).
straight from the shoulder
1 (of a blow) well delivered.
2 (of a verbal attack) frank or direct. straight man a comedian's stooge. straight off colloq. without hesitation, deliberation, etc. (cannot tell you straight off).
straight-out US
1 uncompromising.
2 straightforward, genuine. straight razor US a cutthroat razor.

Derivative

straightly adv. straightness n.

Etymology

ME, past part. of STRETCH

THESAURUS

Straight

OK, aboveboard, absolute, absolutely, accordant, accurate, accurately, ace, admitting no exception, agreed, air line, all right, all-embracing, all-encompassing, all-out, all-pervading, amorous, anal, angelic, arranged, arrowlike, articulated, artless, at once, authentic, away, axis, bare, beeline, best bower, bluff, blunt, bona fide, born, bourgeois, bower, broad, broad-based, brusque, button-down, candid, candidly, cards, carnal, categorical, catenated, ceaseless, chord, clarified, clean, clear, clubs, complete, composed, comprehensive, compulsive, concatenated, concentrated, conclusive, concordant, conformist, congenital, connected, constant, consummate, continual, continued, continuing, continuous, conventional, correct, correctly, corresponding, cyclical, dead, dead ahead, dead right, dead straight, decent, decided, decisive, deck, deep-dyed, definite, definitely, definitive, dependable, determinate, deuce, diagonal, diameter, diamonds, direct, direct line, directly, directrix, distilled, down the alley, downright, due, due north, dummy, dyed-in-the-wool, edge, egregious, emotionless, endless, entire, equitable, erect, erogenic, erogenous, erotic, erotogenic, even, exactly, exhaustive, explicit, explicitly, express, expressly, face cards, fair, fair and square, faithfully, faithworthy, faultless, faultlessly, featureless, final, fixed, flat, flat-out, flawless, flawlessly, fleshly, flush, formalistic, forthright, forthwith, foursquare, frank, frankhearted, free, free-speaking, free-spoken, free-tongued, full, full house, gamic, gapless, genuine, global, godly, good, good-faith, great-circle course, hand, harmonious, heart-to-heart, hearts, heterosexual, honest, honestly, honorable, horizontal, immediate, immediately, impassive, implicit, in a beeline, in a line, in accord, in all respects, in every respect, in keeping, in line, in line with, in order, in step, inappealable, incessant, incorruptible, indisputable, ingenuous, instanter, instantly, intensive, interminable, inviolable, ipsissimis verbis, irreversible, jack, joined, jointless, joker, just, just right, just so, kerplunk, king, knave, kosher, left bower, legitimate, letter-perfect, level, libidinal, lineal, linear, linked, literally, literatim, meticulous, monotonous, moral, naked, neat, never-ending, no-nonsense, nonstop, normal, now, nuptial, okay, omnibus, omnipresent, on the beam, on the level, on the square, on the straight, on the up-and-up, one-way, open, open and aboveboard, openhearted, orderly, organized, orthodox, out-and-out, outright, outspoken, oversexed, pack, pair, pedantic, peremptory, perennial, perfect, perfectly, periodic, perpendicular, pervasive, picture cards, plain, plain dealing, plain-spoken, plainly, plastic, playing cards, plop, plumb, plump, plunk, point-blank, positive, positively, potent, precisely, precisianistic, procreative, promptly, proper, properly, proven, pure, purified, queen, radical, radius, radius vector, rectified, rectilineal, rectilinear, recurrent, regular, reliable, repetitive, respectable, responsible, right, right away, right line, right off, right-minded, righteous, rightly, rigidly, rigorously, round, round-the-clock, royal flush, rubber, ruff, ruler-straight, running, saintlike, saintly, seamless, secant, sedate, segment, sensual, seraphic, serious, serried, settled, sex, sexed, sexlike, sexual, sexy, sheer, shipshape, shortcut, sic, side, simple, simply, sincere, single-hearted, singleton, smack, smack-dab, smooth, so, sober, spades, spang, spruce, square, square-dealing, square-shooting, squarely, stable, staid, steady, straight across, straight ahead, straight course, straight line, straight stretch, straight up, straight-cut, straight-front, straight-out, straight-shooting, straight-side, straight-up-and-down, straightaway, straightforward, straightforwardly, straightforwards, straightly, straightway, streamline, streamlined, strictly, strong, stuffy, summarily, sure, sweeping, taciturn, tangent, tested, thorough, thoroughgoing, through, through-and-through, tidy, to be trusted, to the letter, total, traditionalist, transparent, transversal, trey, trick, tried, tried and true, true, trump, trustable, trustworthy, trusty, twenty-four-hour, ubiquitous, unadulterated, unalloyed, unaltered, unambiguous, unambiguously, unbending, unbent, unblended, unbowed, unbroken, unceasing, unchecked, uncircumscribed, uncombined, uncompounded, unconditional, unconstrained, uncorrupted, uncurved, uncut, undeflected, undersexed, undeviating, undeviatingly, undifferentiated, undiluted, undistorted, undoubting, unembellished, unemotional, unending, unequivocal, unequivocally, unerringly, unfalse, unfortified, unguarded, unhampered, unhesitating, unidirectional, uniform, unintermitted, unintermittent, unintermitting, uninterrupted, universal, unleavened, unlimited, unmingled, unmistakable, unmitigated, unmixed, unmodified, unperfidious, unqualified, unquestioning, unrelieved, unremitting, unreserved, unrestrained, unrestricted, unsmiling, unsophisticated, unstopped, unswerving, unswervingly, untinged, untreacherous, unturned, unveeringly, unwaivable, up-and-up, upright, upstanding, uptight, utter, vector, venereal, verbally, verbatim, verbatim et litteratim, veritable, vertical, virtuous, voluptuous, whole, wholesale, without delay, without exception, without reserve, word by word, word for word

ROGET THESAURUS

Straight

Mid-course

N mid-course, middle course, midcourse, mean, middle, juste milieu, mezzo termine, golden mean, ariston metron, aurea mediocritas, straight, straight course, straight path, short cut, cross cut, great circle sailing, neutrality, half measure, half and half measures, compromise, straight, medium tenuere beati, mid-course, middle course, midcourse, mean, middle, juste milieu, mezzo termine, golden mean, ariston metron, aurea mediocritas, straight, straight course, straight path, short cut, cross cut, great circle sailing, neutrality, half measure, half and half measures, compromise, straight, medium tenuere beati.

Earliness

N earliness, morning, punctuality, promptitude, haste, suddenness, prematurity, precocity, precipitation, anticipation, a stitch in time, early, prime, forward, prompt, summary, premature, precipitate, precocious, prevenient, anticipatory, rath, sudden, unexpected, near, near at hand, immediate, early, soon, anon, betimes, rath, eft, eftsoons, ere long, before long, shortly, beforehand, prematurely, precipitately, too soon, before its time, before one's time, in anticipation, unexpectedly, suddenly, before one can say 'Jack Robinson', at short notice, extempore, on the spur of the moment, on the spur of the occasion, at once, on the spot, on the instant, at sight, offhand, out of hand, a' vue d'oeil, straight, straightway, straightforth, forthwith, incontinently, summarily, immediately, briefly, shortly, quickly, speedily, apace, before the ink is dry, almost immediately, presently at the first opportunity, in no long time, by and by, in a while, directly, no sooner said than done, immediately, if not sooner, tout vient a temps pour qui sait attendre.

Amusement

N amusement, entertainment, recreation, fun, game, fun and games, diversion, divertissement, reaction, solace, pastime, passetemps, sport, labor of love, pleasure, relaxation, leisure, fun, frolic, merriment, jollity, joviality, jovialness, heyday, laughter, jocosity, jocoseness, drollery, buffoonery, tomfoolery, mummery, pleasantry, wit, quip, quirk, giggle, titter, snigger, snicker, crow, cheer, chuckle, shout, horse laugh, belly laugh, hearty laugh, guffaw, burst of laughter, fit of laughter, shout of laughter, roar of laughter, peal of laughter, cachinnation, Kentish fire, tiger, play, game, game at romps, gambol, romp, prank, antic, rig, lark, spree, skylarking, vagary, monkey trick, gambade, fredaine, escapade, echappee, bout, espieglerie, practical joke, dance, hop, reel, rigadoon, saraband, hornpipe, bolero, ballroom dance, minuet, waltz, polka, fox trot, tango, samba, rhumba, twist, stroll, hustle, cha-cha, fandango, cancan, bayadere, breakdown, cake-walk, cornwallis, break dancing, nautch-girl, shindig, skirtdance, stag dance, Virginia reel, square dance, galop, galopade, jig, Irish jig, fling, strathspey, allemande, gavot, gavotte, tarantella, mazurka, morisco, morris dance, quadrille, country dance, folk dance, cotillon, Sir Roger de Coverley, ballet, ball, bal, bal masque, bal costume, masquerade, Terpsichore, festivity, merrymaking, party, blowout, hullabaloo, hoedown, bat, bum, bust, clambake, donation party, fish fry, jamboree, kantikoy, nautch, randy, squantum, tear, Turnerfest, yule log, fete, festival, gala, ridotto, revels, revelry, reveling, carnival, brawl, saturnalia, high jinks, feast, banquet, regale, symposium, wassail, carouse, carousal, jollification, junket, wake, Irish wake, picnic, fete champetre, regatta, field day, treat, round of pleasures, dissipation, a short life and a merry one, racketing, holiday making, rejoicing, jubilee, bonfire, fireworks, feu-de-joie, firecracker, holiday, gala day, red letter day, play day, high days and holidays, high holiday, Bank holiday, May day, Derby day, Saint Monday, Easter Monday, Whit Monday, Bairam, wayz-goos, bean feast, Arbor Day, Declaration Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Memorial Day, Thanksgiving Day, Mardi gras, mi-careme, feria, fiesta, place of amusement, theater, hall, concert room, ballroom, assemblyroom, music hall, park, plaisance, national park, national forest, state park, county park, city park, vest-pocket park, public park (public), arbor, garden, pleasure ground, playground, cricketground, croquet ground, archery ground, hunting ground, tennis court, racket court, bowling alley, green alley, croquet lawn, rink, glaciarum, skating rink, roundabout, merry-go-round, swing, montagne Russe, game of chance, game of skill, athletic sports, gymnastics, archery, rifle shooting, tournament, pugilism, sports, horse racing, the turf, aquatics, skating, sliding, cricket, tennis, lawn tennis, hockey, football, baseball, soccer, ice hockey, basketball, rackets, fives, trap bat and ball, battledore and shuttlecock, la grace, pall- mall, tipcat, croquet, golf, curling, pallone, polo, water polo, tent pegging, tilting at the ring, quintain, greasy pole, quoits, horseshoes, discus, rounders, lacrosse, tobogganing, water polo, knurr and spell, leapfrog, hop skip and jump, mother may I, French and English, tug of war, blindman's bluff, hunt the slopper, hide and seek, kiss in the ring, snapdragon, cross questions and crooked answers, crisscross, hopscotch, jacks, jackstones, marbles, mumblety-peg, mumble-the-peg, pushball, shinney, shinny, tag, billiards, pool, pingpong, pyramids, bagatelle, bowls, skittles, ninepins, kain, American bowls, tenpins, tivoli, cards, card games, whist, rubber, round game, loo, cribbage, besique, euchre, drole, ecarte, picquet, allfours, quadrille, omber, reverse, Pope Joan, commit, boston, boaston, blackjack, twenty- one, vingtun, quinze, thirty-one, put, speculation, connections, brag, cassino, lottery, commerce, snip-snap-snoren, lift smoke, blind hookey, Polish bank, Earl of Coventry, Napoleon, patience, pairs, banker, blind poker, draw poker, straight poker, stud poker, bluff, bridge, bridge whist, lotto, monte, three-card monte, nap, penny-ante, poker, reversis, squeezers, old maid, fright, beggar-my- neighbor, baccarat, ace, king, queen, knave, jack, ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, trey, deuce, joker, trump, wild card, spades, hearts, clubs, diamonds, major suit, minor suit, bower, right bower, left bower, dummy, jackpot, deck, pair, two pair, three of a kind, straight, flush, full-house, four of a kind, royal flush, misere chess, draughts, checkers, checquers, backgammon, dominos, merelles, nine men's morris, go bang, solitaire, game of fox and goose, monopoly, loto, scrabble, scribbage, boggle, crossword puzzle, hangman, morra, gambling, toy, plaything, bauble, doll, teetotum, knickknack, magic lantern, peep show, puppet show, raree show, gallanty show, toy shop, quips and cranks and wanton wiles, nods and becks and wreathed smiles, entertainer, showman, showgirl, dancer, tap dancer, song-and-dance man, vaudeville act, singer, musician, sportsman, gamester, reveler, master of ceremonies, master of revels, pompom girl, arbiter elegantiarum, arbiter bibendi, archer, fan, toxophilite, turfman, amusing, entertaining, diverting, recreational, recreative, lusory, pleasant, laughable, witty, fun, festive, festal, jovial, jolly, jocund, roguish, rompish, playful, playful as a kitten, sportive, ludibrious, funny, very funny, hilarious, uproarious, side-splitting, amused, pleased with a rattle, tickled with a straw, laughing, risible, ready to burst, ready to split, ready to die with laughter, convulsed with laughter, rolling in the aisles, on the light fantastic toe, at play, in sport, Int, vive la bagatelle!, vogue la galere!, deus nobis haec otia fecit, dum vivimus vivamus, dulce est desipere in loco, (every room) hath blazed with lights and brayed wi, misce stullitiam consiliis brevem.

Verticality

N verticality, erectness, perpendicularity, right angle, normal, azimuth circle, wall, precipice, cliff, elevation, erection, square, plumb line, plummet, vertical, upright, erect, perpendicular, plumb, normal, straight, bolt, upright, rampant, standing up, rectangular, orthogonal, vertically, up, on end, up on end, right on end, a plomb, endwise, one one's legs, at right angles.

Straightness

N straightness, rectilinearity, directness, inflexibility, straight line, right line, direct line, short cut, straight, rectilinear, rectilineal, direct, even, right, true, in a line, unbent, virgate, undeviating, unturned, undistorted, unswerving, straight as an arrow, inflexible, laser-straight, ramrod-straight.

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.