Compress
[kəm'pres] or [kəm'prɛs]
Definition
(noun.) a cloth pad or dressing (with or without medication) applied firmly to some part of the body (to relieve discomfort or reduce fever).
(verb.) squeeze or press together; 'she compressed her lips'; 'the spasm contracted the muscle'.
(verb.) make more compact by or as if by pressing; 'compress the data'.
Checked by Adelaide--From WordNet
Definition
(v. t.) To press or squeeze together; to force into a narrower compass; to reduce the volume of by pressure; to compact; to condense; as, to compress air or water.
(v. t.) To embrace sexually.
(n.) A folded piece of cloth, pledget of lint, etc., used to cover the dressing of wounds, and so placed as, by the aid of a bandage, to make due pressure on any part.
Checker: Wendy
Synonyms and Synonymous
v. a. Condense, press, squeeze, crowd, press together.
Editor: Nicolas
Synonyms and Antonyms
SYN:Condense, compact, crowd, squeeze, contract, abridge, epitomize, summarize
ANT:Expand, dilate, diffuse, colliquate, Compression,[See COMPRESS]
Typist: Mabel
Definition
v.t. to press together: to force into a narrower space: to condense or concentrate.—n. Com′press soft folds of linen &c. formed into a pad and used in surgery to apply any requisite pressure to any part: a wet cloth covered with waterproof applied to the skin.—adj. Compressed′.—ns. Compressibil′ity Compres′sibleness the property that bodies have of being reduced in volume by pressure—the ratio of the amount of compression per unit volume to the compressing force applied.—adj. Compres′sible that may be compressed.—n. Compres′sion act of compressing: state of being compressed condensation.—adjs. Compres′sional; Compres′sive able to compress.—ns. Compres′sor anything that compresses; a muscle that compresses certain parts; Compres′sure.—Compressed-air bath a strong chamber of iron plates in which a patient can sit and into which air is driven by a steam-engine to any required pressure; Compressed-air motor any mode of employing air as a motive-power as in automatic railway-brakes &c.
Typist: Preston
Examples
- Our pilgrims compress too much into one day. Mark Twain. The Innocents Abroad.
- Now compress the artery leading from the organ, and the part between the heart and the point of pressur e, and the heart itself, become distended and take on a deep purple color. Walter Libby. An Introduction to the History of Science.
- His problem therefore was how best to compress the air, or, as it appeared to him, how to secure a vacuum. Rupert S. Holland. Historic Inventions.
- The load to be carried is placed on this table, and as the machine was at first designed to compress materials the load is pressed by the rising table against an upper stationary plate. William Henry Doolittle. Inventions in the Century.
- It is like a resilient spring in this respect, that it can give out no more power than was required to compress it. Edward W. Byrn. The Progress of Invention in the Nineteenth Century.
- I will compress the story as far as may be done without omitting anything vital to the case. Arthur Conan Doyle. The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes.
- Compress t he large vein entering the heart, and the part intervening between the point of constriction and the heart becomes empty and the organ pales and shrinks. Walter Libby. An Introduction to the History of Science.
- The carbon being only slightly compressed will offer considerable resistance to the flow of current from the local battery, and therefore the signal on the local sounder will be weak. Frank Lewis Dyer. Edison, His Life and Inventions.
- The principle of the air brake is to store up compressed air in a reservoir on the locomotive by means of a steam pump. Edward W. Byrn. The Progress of Invention in the Nineteenth Century.
- It was at the bottom of a page, and was for want of room compressed into a smaller space than that occupied by the marriages above. Wilkie Collins. The Woman in White.
- Manila hemp is obtained from the leaf stalks of the Philippine plant known as the Abacá, the leaf stems of which are compressed together, and constitute the trunk of the plant. Various. The Wonder Book of Knowledge.
- His face was bent downward, his shoulders bowed, his lips compressed, and the veins stood out like whipcord in his long, sinewy neck. Arthur Conan Doyle. The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes.
- As the gleam of the street-lamps flashed upon his austere features, I saw that his brows were drawn down in thought and his thin lips compressed. Arthur Conan Doyle. The Return of Sherlock Holmes.
- In passing through materials saturated with water, the shield is assisted by using compressed air in the working chamber. Various. The Wonder Book of Knowledge.
- By compressing or exhausting air through this tube it is obvious that the lever, N, will be raised or depressed, and the clockwork set going accordingly. William K. David. Secrets of Wise Men, Chemists and Great Physicians.
- Yes,' said Mrs. Sparsit, suddenly compressing her mouth, 'he had that—honour. Charles Dickens. Hard Times.
- There are the presses also that are used in compressing cotton. William Henry Doolittle. Inventions in the Century.
- Shirley leaned forwards on the table, her nostrils dilating a little, her taper fingers interlaced and compressing each other hard. Charlotte Bronte. Shirley.
- Among the pioneers was one which received the round bunch between two compressing jaws, and pressed it flat. William Henry Doolittle. Inventions in the Century.
- It follows from this law that the density and tension, and therefore the expansive force of a gas, are proportional to the compressing force to which it is subjected. William Henry Doolittle. Inventions in the Century.
- He looked at me fixedly, compressing his well-cut lips while he did so. Charlotte Bronte. Jane Eyre.
- This causes a sound of very great power, which the trumpet collects and compresses, and the blast goes out as a sort of sound beam in the direction required. Various. The Wonder Book of Knowledge.
- Like drama which compresses the tragedy of a lifetime into a unity of time, place, and action, history foreshortens an epoch into an episode. Walter Lippmann. A Preface to Politics.
- C is an air compressing pump, whose plunger descending compresses the air and forces it out through valve I, pipe 2, and coil 3. Edward W. Byrn. The Progress of Invention in the Nineteenth Century.
- The water forced into the air chamber by the downward-moving piston compresses the air and increases its pressure. Bertha M. Clark. General Science.
- As the piston returns it compresses this mixture. William Henry Doolittle. Inventions in the Century.
Checker: Reginald