direction

(dĭ-rĕk'shən, dī-)
n.

1. The act or function of directing.
2. Management, supervision, or guidance of an action or operation.
3. The art or action of musical or theatrical directing.
4. Music. A word or phrase in a score indicating how a passage is to be played or sung.
5. An instruction or series of instructions for doing or finding something. Often used in the plural.
6. An authoritative indication; an order or command.
7. 1. The distance-independent relationship between two points in space that specifies the angular position of either with respect to the other; the relationship by which the alignment or orientation of any position with respect to any other position is established.
   2. A position to which motion or another position is referred.
   3. A line leading to a place or point.
   4. The line or course along which a person or thing moves.
8. The statement in degrees of the angle measured between due north and a given line or course on a compass.
9. A course or area of development; a tendency toward a particular end or goal: charting a new direction for the company.

[Middle English, arrangement, from Latin dīrēctiō, dīrēctiōn-, from dīrēctus, past participle of dīrigere, to direct. See direct.]

directionless di·rec'tion·less adj.

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noun

1. Authoritative control over the affairs of others: administration, government, management, superintendence, supervision. See over/under.
2. The continuous exercise of authority over a political unit: administration, control, governance, government, rule. See control/uncontrol, politics.
3. An act or instance of guiding: guidance, lead, leadership, management. See affect/ineffectiveness.
4. An authoritative indication to be obeyed: behest, bidding, charge, command, commandment, dictate, directive, injunction, instruction (often used in plural), mandate, order, word. See over/under, words.

n

Definition: course, route
Antonyms: deviation, misdirection, wrong way

Boxing the compass is (thankfully) a lost art
The direction of a compass bearing or a boat’s course is referred to in terms of the 360 degrees in a circle, with 360 and 0 degrees representing true north and 180 degrees true south.This simple method is of fairly modern origin. In the days of sailing ships, the compass was divided into points. The cardinal, or principal, points were north, east, south, and west, but they were divided into 32 points of 11¼ degrees each, and portions of points. Seamen had to be able to box the compass; that is, name the 32 points in the correct sequence thus: north,

Converting compass points to degrees and vice versa.

north by east, nor’northeast, northeast by north, northeast, and so on.To complicate matters, the compass card was further divided into half and quarter points (of 5.625 degrees and 2.8125 degrees, respectively) so the transition from north to nor’northeast went this way: N, N ¼ E, N ½ E, N ¾ E, N by E, N by E ¼ E, N by E ½ E, N by E ¾ E, NNE. It became even more cumbersome when you got down to NE by E ¼ E, and so on. Thankfully, we don’t have to worry about that any longer.See also Compass Types.

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(DOD) In artillery and naval gunfire support, a term used by a spotter and/or observer in a call for fire to indicate the bearing of the spotting line. See also bearing; call for fire; naval gunfire support; spotter; spotting line.

Quotes:

"If we do not change our direction, we are likely to end up where we are headed." - Chinese Proverb

"It is better to run back than run the wrong way." - Proverb

"Step by step one goes very far." - Proverb

"You cannot be lost on a road that is straight." - Proverb

"It is only in misery that we recognize the hand of God leading good men to good." - Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe

"If you find a path with no obstacles, it probably doesn't lead anywhere." - Frank A. Clark

See more famous quotes about Direction

Orientation within the body.

• caudal d. — towards the tail end of the body.
• cranial d. — towards the head end of the body.
• distal d. — distant from the long axis of the body.
• dorsal d. — 1. the surface directed towards the back or spine.
— 2. the extensor surface of the distal limbs.
• lateral d. — the surface directed away from the median plane.
• medial d. — towards the median plane (a vertical plane passing through the body from nose tip to tail tip).
• palmar d. — the flexor aspect of the foot, below the carpus, the surface directed towards the ground.
• plantar d. — below the tarsus, the surface directed towards the ground.
• proximal d. — closer to the long axis of the body.
• rostral d. — towards the head or mouth.
• ventral d. — the surface directed towards the belly or ground.

For a list of words related to direction, see:

• Dimensions and Directions - direction: line along which something is pointing, facing, or moving

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See words rhyming with "direction."

  See crossword solutions for the clue Direction.

Dansk (Danish)
n. - ledelse, retning, vejledning, mål, fremgangsmåde, tendens, instruktion, adressering

Nederlands (Dutch)
richting, kant, opzicht, adres, leiding, instructie, directie, windrichting, regie, spelleiding

Français (French)
n. - direction, sens, administration, (Théât) mise en scène, (fig) voie, (Cin, Radio, TV) réalisation, ordre, indication, instruction

Deutsch (German)
n. - Richtung, Führung, Leitung, Anweisung, Regie, Spielleitung

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - διεύθυνση, διοίκηση, επιστασία, εποπτεία, κατεύθυνση, μεριά, σκηνοθεσία, ρύθμιση (κίνησης), οδηγία, καθοδήγηση, διεύθυνση ορχήστρας

Italiano (Italian)
direzione, punto cardinale, messa in scena

Português (Portuguese)
n. - direção (f)

Русский (Russian)
направление, руководство, режиссура

Español (Spanish)
n. - dirección, directivos, gerencia, punto cardinal, instrucciones, tendencia, orden, control, orientación

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - riktning, bildl. område

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
方向, 趋势, 指导

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 方向, 趨勢, 指導

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 방향, 흐름, 지휘

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 指揮, 指導, 監督, 指図, 指示, 方向, 方面, 傾向, 命令

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) اتجاه, توجيه, إدارة, إرشاد, فن الإخراج ( المسرحي ولسينمائي والتلفزيوني)‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮כיוון, הדרכה, הוראות, פיקוח, הנהלה, ניצוח, הנחיות, מען‬

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