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compound

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compound¹

  • /ˈkɒmpaʊnd/ UK
  • /ˈkɑmpaʊnd/
  • /ˈkɒmpaʊnd/ Boston, Canada, Maine
  • /ˈkɔmpæɔnd/ Australia
  • /ˈkɒmpæʊnd/ New Zealand
  • [ˈkɔ̟mpæʊnd] New Zealand
  • /kəmˈpaʊnd/ Philippines
  • /komˈpaʊnd/ Philippines

Where it comes from

Possibly from Malay kampong, kampung (“group of buildings, village”), via Dutch or Portuguese, altered under the influence of Etymology 2. Doublet of kampung.

noun compounds

  1. An enclosure within which workers, prisoners, or soldiers are confined.
  2. An enclosure for secure storage. A separate building on the west side will house a standby powerhouse and a workshop, and there will be an unroofed compound for compressed air cylinders and water tanks.
  3. A group of buildings situated close together, e.g. for a school or block of offices. Shepard: What kind of proof do you have that the major is dangerous? Transmission: Three days ago, we sent two Alliance representatives to meet with him at his compound. They have disappeared. We believe Kyle and his followers killed them. Transmission: That compound is a cult, Shepard. They call hi
  4. Philippines, broadly A group of buildings where members of the same extended family live together.

compound²

  • /ˈkɒmpaʊnd/ UK
  • /ˈkɑmpaʊnd/
  • /ˈkɒmpaʊnd/ Boston, Canada, Maine
  • /ˈkɔmpæɔnd/ Australia
  • /ˈkɒmpæʊnd/ New Zealand
  • [ˈkɔ̟mpæʊnd] New Zealand
  • /kəmˈpaʊnd/ Philippines
  • /komˈpaʊnd/ Philippines
  • /kəmˈpaʊnd/ Canada, Philippines, UK, US

Rhymes with -aʊnd

Where it comes from

From Middle English compounen, from Middle French componre, compondre (“to put together”), from Latin componō, from Latin com- (“together”) + ponō (“to put”).

adjective

  1. not comparable Composed of elements; not simple. a compound word
  2. not comparable Dealing with numbers of various denominations of quantity, or with processes more complex than the simple process. compound addition
  3. not comparable An octave higher than originally (i.e. a compound major second is equivalent to a major ninth).

noun compounds

  1. Anything made by combining several things.
  2. A substance formed by chemical bonding of two or more elements in definite proportions by weight.
  3. dated A substance made from any combination of ingredients. A compound of spurge, cardamom, cinnamon of Mecca, pellitory, ginger, nettle seed is an Arab specific for sexual weakness.
  4. A legal procedure whereby a criminal or delinquent avoids prosecution in a court in exchange for his payment to the authorities of a financial penalty or fine.
  5. A lexeme that consists of more than one stem. Compositionally there is no great distinction between cell wall and cell surface, both are relatively transparent compounds, but both parts of the cell are of high significance in Biology due to their central role in cell functioning.
  6. A lexeme that consists of more than one stem or affix, e.g. "bookshop", "high school" or "non-standard". In the majority of the compounds of non- the hyphen is usually retained; but it is commonly omitted in the case of a few, such as nonconformist, nonentity, nonsense, in which the etymology has been to some extent lost sight of.
  7. A compound locomotive, a steam locomotive with both high-pressure and low-pressure cylinders. From a dead stand, with regulator full open and the lever at about 50 per cent we got up to about 60 m.p.h. by the top of the bank. The big compound was making plenty of noise - but what musical and wonderful noise!
  8. abbreviation, ellipsis Ellipsis of compound exercise.compound exercise

verb compounds · compounding · compounded

  1. transitive To form (a resulting mixture) by combining different elements, ingredients, or parts; to mingle with something else. to compound a medicine
  2. transitive To settle by agreeing on less than the claim, or on different terms than those stipulated. to compound a debt
  3. transitive To settle amicably; to adjust by agreement. I pray, my lords, let me compound this strife.
  4. intransitive To come to terms of agreement; to settle by a compromise. to compound with someone / for something
  5. obsolete, transitive To compose; to constitute. his pomp and all what state compounds
  6. intransitive To increase in value with interest, where the interest is earned on both the principal sum and prior earned interest.
  7. transitive To worsen a situation. […] This latest example of nationalistic self-interest compounded anger across the EU over Trump’s travel ban, imposed last month without consultation or scientific justification.
  8. intransitive Of a horse: to fail to maintain speed. At the hill, the Warrior must have been at least ten lengths in front of Wild Dayrell; but he compounded about 200 yards on the T. Y. C. side of the Red House.

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