What does compact mean?

Definitions for compact
ˈkɒm pæktcom·pact

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

Princeton's WordNet

  1. compact, powder compactnoun

    a small cosmetics case with a mirror; to be carried in a woman's purse

  2. covenant, compact, concordatnoun

    a signed written agreement between two or more parties (nations) to perform some action

  3. compact, compact caradjective

    a small and economical car

  4. compactadjective

    closely and firmly united or packed together

    "compact soil"; "compact clusters of flowers"

  5. compact, heavyset, stocky, thick, thicksetadjective

    having a short and solid form or stature

    "a wrestler of compact build"; "he was tall and heavyset"; "stocky legs"; "a thickset young man"

  6. compendious, compact, succinct, summaryverb

    briefly giving the gist of something

    "a short and compendious book"; "a compact style is brief and pithy"; "succinct comparisons"; "a summary formulation of a wide-ranging subject"

  7. compact, packverb

    have the property of being packable or of compacting easily

    "This powder compacts easily"; "Such odd-shaped items do not pack well"

  8. pack, bundle, wad, compactverb

    compress into a wad

    "wad paper into the box"

  9. compress, compact, pack togetherverb

    make more compact by or as if by pressing

    "compress the data"

  10. compress, constrict, squeeze, compact, contract, pressverb

    squeeze or press together

    "she compressed her lips"; "the spasm contracted the muscle"

Samuel Johnson's Dictionary

  1. Compactadjective

    Etymology: compactus, Latin.

    Is not the density greater in free and open spaces, void of air and other grosser bodies, than within the pores of water, glass, crystal, gems, and other compact bodies. Isaac Newton, Opt.

    Without attraction the dissevered particles of the chaos could never convene into such great compact masses as the planets. Richard Bentley.

  2. COMPACTnoun

    A contract; an accord; an agreement; a mutual and settled appointment between two or more, to do or to forbear something.

    Etymology: pactum, Latin.

    I hope the king made peace with all of us;
    And the compact is firm and true in me. William Shakespeare, Rich. III.

    In the beginnings of speech there was an implicit compact, founded upon common consent, that such words, voices, or gestures, should be signs whereby they would express their thoughts. South.

  3. To Compactverb

    Etymology: compingo compactum, Latin.

    Inform her full of my particular fears;
    And thereto add such reasons of your own,
    As may compact it more. William Shakespeare, King Lear.

    Nor are the nerves of his compacted strength
    Stretch’d, and dissolv’d into unsinew’d length. John Denham.

    By what degrees this earth’s compacted sphere
    Was harden’d, woods, and rocks, and towns to bear. Wentworth Dillon.

    This disease is more dangerous as the solids are more strict and compacted, and consequently more so as people are advanced in age. John Arbuthnot, on Diet.

    Now the bright sun compacts the precious stone,
    Imparting radiant lustre, like his own. Richard Blackmore, Creation.

    If he, compact of jars, grow musical,
    We shall have shortly discord in the spheres. William Shakespeare.

    Thou pernicious woman,
    Compact with her that’s gone, think’st thou thy oaths,
    Though they would swear down each particular fact,
    Were testimonies. William Shakespeare, Measure for Measure.

    We see the world so compacted, that each thing preserveth other things, and also itself. Richard Hooker, b. i. s. 9.

ChatGPT

  1. compact

    In mathematics, particularly in topology, a set is called compact if it has the property that every open cover has a finite subcover. Specifically, a topological space or a set is said to be compact if from any arbitrary collection of open sets that covers the set or the space, a finite number of open sets can be selected that also covers the set or the space. This concept plays a significant role in areas such as real analysis, complex analysis, and general topology.

Webster Dictionary

  1. Compact

    joined or held together; leagued; confederated

  2. Compact

    composed or made; -- with of

  3. Compact

    closely or firmly united, as the particles of solid bodies; firm; close; solid; dense

  4. Compact

    brief; close; pithy; not diffuse; not verbose; as, a compact discourse

  5. Compactverb

    to thrust, drive, or press closely together; to join firmly; to consolidate; to make close; -- as the parts which compose a body

  6. Compactverb

    to unite or connect firmly, as in a system

  7. Compactnoun

    an agreement between parties; a covenant or contract

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary

  1. Compact

    kom-pakt′, adj. fastened or packed together: firm: close: brief.—v.t. to press closely together: to consolidate: (Shak.) to confirm.—adj. Compact′ed, firmly put together: compact.—adv. Compact′edly.—n. Compact′edness.—adv. Compact′ly.—ns. Compact′ness, state of being compact: closeness: solidity: terseness; Compac′ture (Spens.) close union or knitting together; Compāge′, Compā′ges, a structure of many parts. [Fr.,—L. com, pactus, pa.p. of compingĕrecom, together, pangĕre, to fix. Cf. Fang.]

  2. Compact

    kom′pakt, n. a mutual bargain or agreement: a league, treaty, or union: (Shak.) league, in bad sense.—adj. united: leagued. [L. compactumcompacisci, from com, with, and pacisci, to make a bargain; cf. pangĕre.]

The New Hacker's Dictionary

  1. compact

    Of a design, describes the valuable property that it can all be apprehended at once in one's head. This generally means the thing created from the design can be used with greater facility and fewer errors than an equivalent tool that is not compact. Compactness does not imply triviality or lack of power; for example, C is compact and FORTRAN is not, but C is more powerful than FORTRAN. Designs become non-compact through accreting features and cruft that don't merge cleanly into the overall design scheme (thus, some fans of Classic C maintain that ANSI C is no longer compact).

British National Corpus

  1. Adjectives Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'compact' in Adjectives Frequency: #823

How to pronounce compact?

How to say compact in sign language?

Numerology

  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of compact in Chaldean Numerology is: 3

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of compact in Pythagorean Numerology is: 8

Examples of compact in a Sentence

  1. Richard Edelman:

    There must be a new compact between company and individual, where companies demonstrate that innovations are safe based on independent research, provide both societal and personal benefit and are committed to the protection of customer data.

  2. Alan Cominsky:

    The debris field is scattered throughout, and it’s compact, extremely compact.

  3. James K. Polk:

    The Constitution itself, plainly written as it is, the safeguard of our federative compact, the offspring of concession and compromise, binding together in the bonds of peace and union this great and increasing family of free and independent States, will be the chart by which I shall be directed.

  4. George Mason:

    All men are created equally free and independent, and have certain inherent rights, of which they cannot, by any compact, deprive or divest their posterity; among which are the enjoyment of life and liberty, with the means of acquiring and possessing property, and pursuing the obtaining of happiness and safety.

  5. James Madison:

    [In the case of] dangerous exercise of other powers, not granted by the said compact, the states, who are parties thereto, have the right, and are duty bound, to interpose for arresting the progress of the evil.

Popularity rank by frequency of use

compact#1#3048#10000

Translations for compact

From our Multilingual Translation Dictionary

Get even more translations for compact »

Translation

Find a translation for the compact definition in other languages:

Select another language:

  • - Select -
  • 简体中文 (Chinese - Simplified)
  • 繁體中文 (Chinese - Traditional)
  • Español (Spanish)
  • Esperanto (Esperanto)
  • 日本語 (Japanese)
  • Português (Portuguese)
  • Deutsch (German)
  • العربية (Arabic)
  • Français (French)
  • Русский (Russian)
  • ಕನ್ನಡ (Kannada)
  • 한국어 (Korean)
  • עברית (Hebrew)
  • Gaeilge (Irish)
  • Українська (Ukrainian)
  • اردو (Urdu)
  • Magyar (Hungarian)
  • मानक हिन्दी (Hindi)
  • Indonesia (Indonesian)
  • Italiano (Italian)
  • தமிழ் (Tamil)
  • Türkçe (Turkish)
  • తెలుగు (Telugu)
  • ภาษาไทย (Thai)
  • Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)
  • Čeština (Czech)
  • Polski (Polish)
  • Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian)
  • Românește (Romanian)
  • Nederlands (Dutch)
  • Ελληνικά (Greek)
  • Latinum (Latin)
  • Svenska (Swedish)
  • Dansk (Danish)
  • Suomi (Finnish)
  • فارسی (Persian)
  • ייִדיש (Yiddish)
  • հայերեն (Armenian)
  • Norsk (Norwegian)
  • English (English)

Word of the Day

Would you like us to send you a FREE new word definition delivered to your inbox daily?

Please enter your email address:


Citation

Use the citation below to add this definition to your bibliography:

Style:MLAChicagoAPA

"compact." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2023. Web. 8 Dec. 2023. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/compact>.

Discuss these compact definitions with the community:

0 Comments

    Are we missing a good definition for compact? Don't keep it to yourself...

    Free, no signup required:

    Add to Chrome

    Get instant definitions for any word that hits you anywhere on the web!

    Free, no signup required:

    Add to Firefox

    Get instant definitions for any word that hits you anywhere on the web!

    Browse Definitions.net

    Quiz

    Are you a words master?

    »
    remarkable or wonderful
    • A. askant
    • B. bonzer
    • C. ostensive
    • D. pecuniary

    Nearby & related entries:

    Alternative searches for compact: