act

English

Etymology

From Middle English acte, from Old French acte, from Latin ācta (“register of events”), plural of āctum (“decree, law”), from agere (“to do, to act”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂éǵeti. Compare German Akte (“file”). Partially displaced deed, from Old English dǣd (“act, deed”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ækt/
• (AAVE) IPA^(key): /æk/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ækt

Noun

act (countable and uncountable, plural acts)

1. (countable) Something done, a deed.

   an act of goodwill

   • 1798, William Wordsworth, Lines

     That best portion of a good man's life, / His little, nameless, unremembered acts / Of kindness and of love.

   • Deed definition

     An action or act; something that is done. (1 of 4 deed definitions)
2. (obsolete, uncountable) Actuality.
   • 1594, Richard Hooker, Of the Lawes of Ecclesiastical Politie

     The seeds of plants are not at first in act, but in possibility, what they afterward grow to be.

   • Actuality definition

     The state of existing; existence. (1 of 4 actuality definitions)
3. (theology) Something done once and for all, as distinguished from a work.

   • Theology definition

     The study of God, a god, or gods; and of the truthfulness of religion in general. (1 of 7 theology definitions)

   • Work definition

     Employment.

     1. Labour, occupation, job. (1 of 19 work definitions)
4. (countable) A product of a legislative body, a statute.
   • 2012 March 1, William E. Carter, Merri Sue Carter, “The British Longitude Act Reconsidered”, in American Scientist‎^[1], volume 100, number 2, page 87:

     But was it responsible governance to pass the Longitude Act without other efforts to protect British seamen? Or might it have been subterfuge—a disingenuous attempt to shift attention away from the realities of their life at sea.

   • Legislative Body definition

     A political institution which holds the legislative power in a state, and often controls the executive power. (1 of 2 legislative body definitions)

   • Statute definition

     Written law, as laid down by the legislature. (1 of 2 statute definitions)
5. The process of doing something.

   He was caught in the act of stealing.

6. (countable) A formal or official record of something done.
7. (countable, drama) A division of a theatrical performance.
   • 1905, Baroness Emmuska Orczy, chapter 2, in The Lisson Grove Mystery‎^[2]:

     “H'm !” he said, “so, so—it is a tragedy in a prologue and three acts. I am going down this afternoon to see the curtain fall for the third time on what [...] will prove a good burlesque ; but it all began dramatically enough. It was last Saturday […] that two boys, playing in the little spinney just outside Wembley Park Station, came across three large parcels done up in American cloth. […]”

   The pivotal moment in the play was in the first scene of the second act.

   • Drama definition

     A composition, normally in prose, telling a story and intended to be represented by actors impersonating the characters and speaking the dialogue (1 of 5 drama definitions)

   • Theatrical definition

     Of or relating to the theatre. (1 of 2 theatrical definitions)

   • Performance definition

     The act of performing; carrying into execution or action; execution; achievement; accomplishment; representation by action. (1 of 5 performance definitions)
8. (countable) A performer or performers in a show.

   Which act did you prefer? The soloist or the band?

   • Performer definition

     One who performs for, or entertains, an audience. (1 of 2 performer definitions)
9. (countable) Any organized activity.
   • 1934, Babette Hughes, One egg: a farce in one act, page 46:

     The minute you let it be known you're planning a sales campaign everybody wants to get into the act.

10. (countable) A display of behaviour.

    • Behaviour definition

      Alternative spelling of behavior
11. A thesis maintained in public, in some English universities, by a candidate for a degree, or to show the proficiency of a student.

    • Thesis definition

      Senses relating to logic, rhetoric, etc.

      1. A proposition or statement supported by arguments.
      2. A lengthy essay written to establish the validity of a thesis (sense 1.1), especially one submitted as a requirement for a university degree; a dissertation.
      3. An affirmation, or distinction from a supposition or hypothesis.
      4. In the dialectical method of Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel: the initial stage of reasoning where a formal statement of a point is developed; this is followed by antithesis and synthesis.

      (1 of 8 thesis definitions)

    • Candidate definition

      A person who is running in an election. (1 of 5 candidate definitions)

    • Degree definition

      A stage of proficiency or qualification in a course of study, now especially an award bestowed by a university or, in some countries, a college, as a certification of academic achievement. (In the United States, can include secondary schools.) (1 of 16 degree definitions)

    • Proficiency definition

      Ability, skill, competence.

    • Student definition

      A person who studies or learns about a particular subject. (1 of 3 student definitions)
12. (countable) A display of behaviour meant to deceive.

    to put on an act

    • Deceive definition

      To trick or mislead.

Synonyms

• (something done): deed; see also Thesaurus:action
• (product of a legislative body): statute
• (display of behavior): pretense

Meronyms

• (drama): scene

Holonyms

• (drama): play

Derived terms

Related terms

Translations

Verb

act (third-person singular simple present acts, present participle acting, simple past and past participle acted)

1. (intransitive) To do something.

   If you don't act soon, you will be in trouble.

2. (obsolete, transitive) To do (something); to perform.
   • 1650, Jeremy Taylor, The Rule and Exercises of Holy Living, Purity of Intention

     that we act our temporal affairs with a desire no greater than our necessity

   • a. 1677, Isaac Barrow, Of Industry in General (sermon)

     Industry doth beget by producing good habits, and facility of acting things expedient for us to do.

   • 1782, William Cowper, Expostulation

     Uplifted hands that at convenient times / Could act extortion and the worst of crimes.

3. (intransitive) To perform a theatrical role.

   I started acting at the age of eleven in my local theatre.

   • Perform definition

     To do (something); to execute. (1 of 10 perform definitions)
4. (intransitive) Of a play: to be acted out (well or badly).
   • 2011, Effiong Johnson, Play Production Processes, page 180:

     But whatever types he assumes, the need to have a good play which acts delightfully well before the audience, and to their delectation, is the dominant thrust. If the play acts well, the director gets the credits.

5. (intransitive) To behave in a certain manner for an indefinite length of time.

   A dog which acts aggressively is likely to bite.

   I believe that Bill's stuck-up because of the way that he acts.

   He's acting strangely - I think there's something wrong with him.

   • Behave definition

     To conduct (oneself) well, or in a given way. (1 of 4 behave definitions)

   • Certain definition

     Sure, positive, not doubting. (1 of 8 certain definitions)

   • Indefinite definition

     Without limit; forever, or until further notice; not definite. (1 of 5 indefinite definitions)
6. (copulative) To convey an appearance of being.

   He acted unconcerned so the others wouldn't worry.

   • Copular Verb definition

     A verb that links a subject to a complement that refers to the subject.
7. (intransitive) To do something that causes a change binding on the doer.

   act on behalf of John

8. (intransitive, construed with on or upon) To have an effect (on).

   High-pressure oxygen acts on the central nervous system and may cause convulsions or death.

   Gravitational force acts on heavy bodies.

   • On definition

     In the state of being active, functioning or operating. (1 of 9 on definitions)

   • Upon definition

     Physically above and in contact with. (1 of 5 upon definitions)

   • Effect definition

     The result or outcome of a cause. (1 of 11 effect definitions)
9. (transitive) To play (a role).

   He's been acting Shakespearean leads since he was twelve.

   • Role definition

     A character or part played by a performer or actor. (1 of 6 role definitions)
10. (transitive) To feign.

    He acted the angry parent, but was secretly amused.

    • 1697, “The Second Book of the Æneis”, in John Dryden, transl., The Works of Virgil: Containing His Pastorals, Georgics, and Æneis. […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], OCLC 403869432:

      With acted fear the villain thus pursued.

    • Feign definition

      To make a false show or pretence of; to counterfeit or simulate. (1 of 4 feign definitions)
11. (mathematics, intransitive, construed with on or upon, of a group) To map via a homomorphism to a group of automorphisms (of).

    This group acts on the circle, so it can't be left-orderable!

    • Mathematics definition

      An abstract representational system used in the study of numbers, shapes, structure, change and the relationships between these concepts. (1 of 2 mathematics definitions)

    • Group definition

      A number of things or persons being in some relation to one another. (1 of 15 group definitions)

    • Map definition

      A visual representation of an area, whether real or imaginary, showing the relative positions of places and other features. (1 of 6 map definitions)

    • Homomorphism definition

      A structure-preserving map between two algebraic structures of the same type, such as groups, rings, or vector spaces. (1 of 2 homomorphism definitions)

    • Automorphism definition

      An isomorphism of a mathematical object or system of objects onto itself. (1 of 2 automorphism definitions)
12. (obsolete, transitive) To move to action; to actuate; to animate.
    • 1733, [Alexander Pope], An Essay on Man. […], (please specify |epistle=I to IV), London: Printed for J[ohn] Wilford, […], OCLC 960856019:

      Self-love, the spring of motion, acts the soul.

Derived terms

Related terms

Translations

Anagrams

• ATC, CAT, CTA, Cat, TAC, TCA, cat, tac

Middle English

Noun

act

1. Alternative form of acte

   • Acte definition

     act

Old Irish

Conjunction

act

1. Alternative spelling of acht (“but”)

   • Acht definition

     eight

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French acte, from Latin actus.

Noun

act n (plural acte)

1. act, deed, action

   • Act definition

     Something done, a deed. (1 of 12 act definitions)

   • Action definition

     The effort of performing or doing something. (1 of 16 action definitions)

Related terms

• acțiune

See also

• fapt, faptă
• lucru

Further reading

• act in DEX online - Dicționare ale limbii române (Dictionaries of the Romanian language)

Scots

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ak(t)/

Noun

act (plural acts)

1. an act

Verb

act (third-person singular present acts, present participle actin, past actit, past participle actit)

1. act
2. enact

   • Enact definition

     to make (a bill) into law (1 of 3 enact definitions)
3. decree

   • Decree definition

     An edict or law. (1 of 4 decree definitions)

References

• Eagle, Andy, ed. (2016) The Online Scots Dictionary, Scots Online.

Welsh

Etymology

From English act.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /akt/

Noun

act f (plural actau)

1. act

Derived terms

• Actau'r Apostolion (“Acts of the Apostles”)
• actio (“to act”)
• actor (“actor”)
• actores (“actress”)

Mutation

Further reading

• R. J. Thomas, G. A. Bevan, P. J. Donovan, A. Hawke et al., editors (1950–present) , “act”, in Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru Online (in Welsh), University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh & Celtic Studies