What does ON mean?

Definitions for ON
ɒn, ɔnon

This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word ON.

Princeton's WordNet

  1. onadjective

    in operation or operational

    "left the oven on"; "the switch is in the on position"

  2. onadverb

    (of events) planned or scheduled

    "the picnic is on, rain or shine"; "we have nothing on for Friday night"

  3. along, onadverb

    with a forward motion

    "we drove along admiring the view"; "the horse trotted along at a steady pace"; "the circus traveled on to the next city"; "move along"; "march on"

  4. onadverb

    indicates continuity or persistence or concentration

    "his spirit lives on"; "shall I read on?"

  5. onadverb

    in a state required for something to function or be effective

    "turn the lights on"; "get a load on"

GCIDE

  1. Onprep.

    In reference to; about; concerning; as, to think on it; to meditate on it.

  2. Onprep.

    Indicating dependence or reliance; with confidence in; as, to depend on a person for assistance; to rely on; hence, indicating the ground or support of anything; as, he will promise on certain conditions; to bet on a horse; based on certain assumptions.

  3. Onprep.

    At the time of; -- often conveying some notion of cause or motive; as, on public occasions, the officers appear in full dress or uniform; the shop is closed on Sundays. Hence, in consequence of, or following; as, on the ratification of the treaty, the armies were disbanded; start on the count of three.

  4. Onprep.

    Occupied with; in the performance of; as, only three officers are on duty; on a journey; on the job; on an assignment; on a case; on the alert.

Samuel Johnson's Dictionary

  1. Onadverb

    As he forbore one act, so he might have foreborn another, and after that another, and so on, till he had by degrees weakened, and at length mortified and extinguished the habit itself. Robert South, Sermons.

    If the tenant fail the landlord, he must fail his creditor, and he his, and so on. John Locke.

    These smaller particles are again composed of others much smaller, all which together are equal to all the pores or empty spaces between them; and so on perpetually till you come to solid particles, such as have no pores. Newt.

    On indeed they went; but oh! not far;
    A fatal stop travers’d their head-long course. Daniel.

    So saying, on he led his radiant files. John Milton.

    Hopping and flying, thus they led him on
    To the slow lake. Dryden.

    What kindled in the dark the vital flame,
    And ere the heart was form’d, push’d on the red’ning stream. Richard Blackmore, on Creation.

    Go to, I did not mean to chide you;
    On with your tale. Nicholas Rowe, J. Shore.

    Let them sleep, let them sleep on,
    Till this stormy night be gone,
    And th’ eternal morrow dawn. Richard Crashaw.

    Sing on, sing on, for I can ne’er be cloy’d. Dryden.

    You roam about, and never are at rest;
    By new desires, that is, new torments still possest:
    As in a fev’rish dream you still drink on,
    And wonder why your thirst is never gone. Dryden.

    The peasants defy the sun; they work on in the hottest part of the day without intermission. John Locke, Educat.

    A long cloak he had on. Philip Sidney.

    Stiff in brocade, and pinch’d in stays,
    Her patches, paint, and jewels on;
    All day let envy view her face,
    And Phyllis is but twenty-one. Matthew Prior.

    Since ’tis decreed, and to this period lead
    A thousand ways, the noblest path we’ll tread;
    And bravely on, till they or we, or all,
    A common sacrifice to honour fall. John Denham.

  2. Oninterject.

    A word of incitement or encouragement to attack; elliptically for go on.

    Therefore on, or strip your sword stark-naked; for meddle you must. William Shakespeare, Twelfth Night.

    Cheerly on, couragious friends,
    To reap the harvest of perpetual peace,
    By this one bloody trial of sharp war. William Shakespeare, R. III.

  3. Onprep.

    Etymology: aen, Dutch; an, German.

    He is not lolling on a lewd love bed,
    But on his knees at meditation. William Shakespeare, Rich. III.

    What news? ——
    —— Richmond is on the seas. ——
    —— There let him sink and be the seas on him. William Shakespeare.

    Distracted terror knew not what was best;
    On what determination to abide. Samuel Daniel, Civ. War.

    How soon hath time, the suttle thief of youth,
    Stol’n on his wing my three and twentieth year,
    My hasting days fly on with full career. John Milton.

    As some to witness truth heav’n’s call obey,
    So some on earth must, to confirm it, stay. Dryden.

    They stooping low,
    Perch’d on the double tree. John Dryden, Æn. vi.

    Th’ unhappy husband, husband now no more,
    Did on his tuneful harp his loss deplore. Dryden.

    Mischiefs on mischiefs, greater still and more,
    The neighb’ring plain with arms is cover’d o’er. Dryden.

    Ho Mæris! whither on thy way so fast?
    This leads to town. Dryden.

    Chuse next a province for thy vineyard’s reign,
    On hills above, or in the lowly plain. Dryden.

    Their navy ploughs the wat’ry main,
    Yet soon expect it on your shores again. Dryden.

    On me, on me let all thy fury fall,
    Nor err from me, since I deserve it all. Alexander Pope.

    On God’s providence and on your bounty, all their present support and future hopes depend. George Smalridge.

    On each side her,
    Stood pretty dimpled boys, like smiling
    Cupids. William Shakespeare, Ant. and Cleo.

    The same prevalence of genius, the world cannot pardon your concealing, on the same consideration; because we neither have a living Varus nor a Quintus Horatius Flaccus. Dryden.

    The joy of a monarch for the news of a victory, must not be expressed like the ecstasy of a harlequin on the receipt of a letter from his mistress. John Dryden, Dufresnoy.

    The best way to be used by a father on any occasion, to reform any thing he wishes mended in his son. John Locke.

    We abstain on such solemn occasions from things lawful, out of indignation that we have often gratified ourselves in things unlawful. George Smalridge, Sermons.

    Compassion on the king commands me stoop. William Shakespeare.

    Cou’d tears recal him into wretched life,
    Their sorrow hurts themselves; on him is lost. Dryden.

    Hence on thy life; the captive maid is mine,
    Whom not for price or pray’rs I will resign. Dryden.

    Sorrow on thee, and all the pack of you,
    That triumph thus upon my misery! William Shakespeare.

    On thee, dear wife, in deserts all alone
    He call’d. John Dryden, Virg. Georg. iv.

    —— The earth shook to see the heav’ns on fire,
    And not in fear of your nativity. William Shakespeare, Henry IV.

    The horses burnt as they stood fast tied in the stables, or by chance breaking loose ran up and down with their tails and mains on a light fire. Richard Knolles, Hist. of the Turks.

    His fancy grows in the progress, and becomes on fire like a chariot wheel by its own rapidity. Alexander Pope, Iliad. Pref. to.

    I can be satisfied on more easy terms. Dryden.

    The Rhodians, on the other side, mindful of their former honour, valiantly repulsed the enemy. Richard Knolles.

    This tempest,
    Dashing the garment of this peace, aboded
    The sudden breach on’t. William Shakespeare, Henry VIII.

    A thriving gamester has but a poor trade on’t, who fills his pockets at the price of his reputation. John Locke, Educat.

    Note,
    How much her grace is alter’d on the sudden? William Shakespeare.

ChatGPT

  1. on

    The word "on" generally refers to being above or in contact with a surface or covering, or being supported by something else. It can also indicate the state of being in progress or occurring at a particular time. Additionally, "on" can denote the direction or location of someone or something.

  2. On

    On is a preposition commonly used to indicate a surface or location at which something is happening or positioned. It implies a state of being or action taking place at a particular place or time. It can also suggest movement towards a place or an object being supported by or resting on a surface.

Wikidata

  1. On

    On is the title of a 1993 EP by the British electronic music artist Richard D. James, more commonly known by his recording alias of Aphex Twin. It was released on 15 November 1993 by Warp Records. On Remixes, featuring remixes by James, Reload and µ-Ziq, was also released on the same day. Released after his album Selected Ambient Works 85–92, and just before his follow-up, Selected Ambient Works Volume II, On is often described as ambient techno despite the presence of harsh, abrasive beats on the title track. The title "On" is only mentioned once in the track list of the On EP.

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary

  1. On

    on, prep., in contact with the upper part of: to and toward the surface of: upon or acting by contact with: not off: at or near: at or during: in addition to: toward, for: at the peril of: in consequence: immediately after: (B.) off.—adv. above, or next beyond: forward, in succession: in continuance: not off.—interj. go on! proceed!—adj. denoting the part of the field to the left of a right-handed batter, and to the right of the bowler—opp. to Off. [A.S. on; Dut. aan, Ice. á, Ger. an.]

  2. On

    on, prep. (Scot.) without.

Dictionary of Nautical Terms

  1. on

    The sea is said to be "on" when boisterous; as, there is a high sea on.

Military Dictionary and Gazetteer

  1. on

    A preposition frequently used in military exercise. It precedes the word of command which directs the change or formation of bodies of men upon points that are fixed; as, form on the centre company.

Editors Contribution

  1. on

    To use something.

    They put the cooker on cook food.


    Submitted by MaryC on February 22, 2020  

Suggested Resources

  1. on

    Song lyrics by on -- Explore a large variety of song lyrics performed by on on the Lyrics.com website.

  2. On

    On vs. Onboard -- In this Grammar.com article you will learn the differences between the words On and Onboard.

Surnames Frequency by Census Records

  1. ON

    According to the U.S. Census Bureau, On is ranked #20309 in terms of the most common surnames in America.

    The On surname appeared 1,309 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 would have the surname On.

    85.1% or 1,115 total occurrences were Asian.
    8.1% or 106 total occurrences were White.
    2.3% or 31 total occurrences were of Hispanic origin.
    2.2% or 29 total occurrences were of two or more races.
    2.1% or 28 total occurrences were Black.

British National Corpus

  1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'ON' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #16

  2. Written Corpus Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'ON' in Written Corpus Frequency: #29

  3. Adverbs Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'ON' in Adverbs Frequency: #15

Anagrams for ON »

  1. N.O.

  2. No

  3. no

  4. no.

How to pronounce ON?

How to say ON in sign language?

Numerology

  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of ON in Chaldean Numerology is: 3

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of ON in Pythagorean Numerology is: 2

Popularity rank by frequency of use

ON#1#9#10000

Translations for ON

From our Multilingual Translation Dictionary

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