Word Direct Answers

What does "note" mean?

Note: A mark or token by which a thing may be known; a visible sign; a character; a distinctive mark or feature; a characteristic quality. Whosoever appertain to the visible body of the church, they have also the notes of external profession. Hooker. She [the Anglican church] has the note of possession, the note of freedom from party titles,the note of life -- a tough life and a vigorous. J. H. Newman. What a note of youth, of imagination, of impulsive eagerness, there was through it all ! Mrs. Humphry Ward.

Additional senses

  1. 2.A mark, or sign, made to call attention, to point out something to notice, or the like; a sign, or token, proving or giving evidence.
  2. 3.A brief remark; a marginal comment or explanation; hence, an annotation on a text or author; a comment; a critical, explanatory, or illustrative observation. The best writers have been perplexed with notes, and obscured with illustrations. Felton.
  3. 4.A brief writing intended to assist the memory; a memorandum; a minute.
  4. 5.pl. Hence, a writing intended to be used in speaking; memoranda to assist a speaker, being either a synopsis, or the full text of what is to be said; as, to preach from notes; also, a reporter's memoranda; the original report of a speech or of proceedings.
  5. 6.A short informal letter; a billet.
  6. 7.A diplomatic missive or written communication.
  7. 8.A written or printed paper acknowledging a debt, and promising payment; as, a promissory note; a note of hand; a negotiable note.
  8. 9.A list of items or of charges; an account. [Obs.] Here is now the smith's note for shoeing. Shak.
  9. 10.(Mus.) (a) A character, variously formed, to indicate the length of a tone, and variously placed upon the staff to indicate its pitch. Hence: (b) A musical sound; a tone; an utterance; a tune. (c) A key of the piano or organ. The wakeful bird . . . tunes her nocturnal note. Milton. That note of revolt against the eighteenth century, which we detect in Goethe, was struck by Winckelmann. W. Pater.
  10. 11.Observation; notice; heed. Give orders to my servants that they take No note at all of our being absent hence. Shak.
  11. 12.Notification; information; intelligence. [Obs.] The king . . . shall have note of this. Shak.
  12. 13.State of being under observation. [Obs.] Small matters . . . continually in use and in note. Bacon.
  13. 14.Reputation; distinction; as, a poet of note. There was scarce a family of note which had not poured out its blood on the field or the scaffold. Prescott.
  14. 15.Stigma; brand; reproach. [Obs.] Shak. Note of hand, a promissory note.
  15. 16.To notice with care; to observe; to remark; to heed; to attend to. Pope. No more of that; I have noted it well. Shak.
  16. 17.To record in writing; to make a memorandum of. Every unguarded word . . . was noted down. Maccaulay.
  17. 18.To charge, as with crime (with of or for before the thing charged); to brand. [Obs.] They were both noted of incontinency. Dryden.
  18. 19.To denote; to designate. Johnson.
  19. 20.To annotate. [R.] W. H. Dixon.
  20. 21.To set down in musical characters. To note a bill or draft, to record on the back of it a refusal of acceptance, as the ground of a protest, which is done officially by a notary.

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