environment


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en·vi·ron·ment

 (ĕn-vī′rən-mənt, -vī′ərn-)
n.
1.
a. The totality of the natural world, often excluding humans: "Technology, of course, lies at the heart of man's relationship with the environment" (Mark Hertsgaard).
b. A subset of the natural world; an ecosystem: the coastal environment.
c. The combination of external physical conditions that affect and influence the growth, development, behavior, and survival of organisms: "Conditions in a lion's environment ... can drive it to hunt people" (Philip Caputo).
d. The complex of social and cultural conditions affecting the nature of an individual person or community.
2. The general set of conditions or circumstances: a terrible environment for doing business.
3. Computers
a. The entire set of conditions under which one operates a computer, as it relates to the hardware, operating platform, or operating system.
b. An area of a computer's memory used by the operating system and some programs to store certain variables to which they need frequent access.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

environment

(ɪnˈvaɪrənmənt)
n
1. external conditions or surroundings, esp those in which people live or work
2. (Biology) ecology the external surroundings in which a plant or animal lives, which tend to influence its development and behaviour
3. the state of being environed; encirclement
4. (Computer Science) computing an operating system, program, or integrated suite of programs that provides all the facilities necessary for a particular application: a word-processing environment.
enˌvironˈmental adj
enˌvironˈmentally adv
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

en•vi•ron•ment

(ɛnˈvaɪ rən mənt, -ˈvaɪ ərn-)

n.
1. the aggregate of surrounding things, conditions, or influences; surroundings; milieu.
2. the air, water, minerals, organisms, and all other external factors surrounding and affecting a given organism at any time.
3. the social and cultural forces that shape the life of a person or a population.
4. the hardware or software configuration of a computer system.
[1825–30]
en•vi`ron•men′tal, adj.
en•vi`ron•men′tal•ly, adv.
syn: environment, milieu, ambiance, setting refer to the objects, conditions, or circumstances that influence the life of an individual or community. environment may refer to physical or to social and cultural surroundings: an environment of grinding poverty. milieu, encountered most often in literary writing, refers to intangible surroundings: a milieu of artistic innovation. ambiance applies to the mood or tone of the surroundings: an ambiance of ease and elegance. setting tends to highlight the person or thing surrounded by or set against a background: a lovely setting for a wedding.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.

en·vi·ron·ment

(ĕn-vī′rən-mənt)
All of the physical, chemical, and biological conditions that together act on an organism or an ecological community and influence its growth and development. Soil, air, water, climate, plant and animal life, noise level, and pollution are all components of an environment. To survive, organisms must often adapt to changes in their environments.
The American Heritage® Student Science Dictionary, Second Edition. Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Environment


the study of the relationship of flowers to their environment. — anthoecologic, anthoecological, adj.
the study of the effects upon each other of environment and race. — anthroposociologic, anthroposociological, adj.
the study of an individual organism, or the species regarded collectively, in relation to environment. — autecologic, autecological, adj.
the study of the interrelation of plants and animals in their common environment. — bioecologist, n.
ecology, Also bionomy. — bionomist, n. — bionomic, bionomical, adj.
ergonomics.
the transplanting of a plant to a new environment.
destruction of the environment.
1. the branch of biology that studies the relationship of organisms and environments. Also called bionomics, bionomy.
2. the branch of sociology that studies the environmental spacing and interdependence of people and their institutions, as in rural or urban settings. — ecologist, oecologist, n. — ecologie, oecologic, ecological, oecological, adj.
any area or region regarded as a unit for ecological observation and study of the interrelationships between organisms and their environment.
a transitional area or zone between two different forms of vegetation, as between forest and plain. — ecotonal, adj.
a type or subspecies of life that is especially well adapted to a certain environment. — ecotypic, adj.
concern for and action on behalf of the environment and its preservation. — environmentalist, n.
the study of the relation of man to the environment in which he works and the application of anatomical, physiological, psychological, and engineering knowledge to the problems involved. Also called biotechnology. — ergonomic, adj.
a science concerned with improving the well-being of mankind through improvement of the environment. — euthenist, n.
a combination of genetics and ecology that studies animal species and their environment. — genecologist, n. — genecologic, genecological, adj.
an instrument for measuring impurities in the air. — konimetric, adj.
the measurement of impurities in the air by means of a konimeter. — konimetric, adj.
the study of atmospheric dust and other impurities in the air, as germs, pollen, etc., especially regarding their effect on plant and animal life.
the study of fogs and smogs, especially those affecting air pollution levels.
(of lakes) the quality of containing a low accumulation of dissolved nutrient salts, thus supporting little plant or animal life and having a high oxygen content owing to the low organic content. — oligotrophic, adj.
the branch of ecology that studies the relationship of ancient plants and animals to their environments. — paleoecologic, palaeoecologic, paleoecological, palaeoecological, adj.
a person who is concerned with or active in the preservation of wildlife, historical sites, natural habitats, and other features of the environment.
the branch of ecology that studies the relationship between plant and animal communities and their environments. — synecologic, synecological, adj.
-Ologies & -Isms. Copyright 2008 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Noun1.environment - the totality of surrounding conditionsenvironment - the totality of surrounding conditions; "he longed for the comfortable environment of his living room"
situation, state of affairs - the general state of things; the combination of circumstances at a given time; "the present international situation is dangerous"; "wondered how such a state of affairs had come about"; "eternal truths will be neither true nor eternal unless they have fresh meaning for every new social situation"- Franklin D.Roosevelt
circumstance, context, setting - the set of facts or circumstances that surround a situation or event; "the historical context"
ecology - the environment as it relates to living organisms; "it changed the ecology of the island"
scope, setting, background - the state of the environment in which a situation exists; "you can't do that in a university setting"
home - an environment offering affection and security; "home is where the heart is"; "he grew up in a good Christian home"; "there's no place like home"
milieu, surroundings - the environmental condition
arena, domain, sphere, orbit, area, field - a particular environment or walk of life; "his social sphere is limited"; "it was a closed area of employment"; "he's out of my orbit"
street - the streets of a city viewed as a depressed environment in which there is poverty and crime and prostitution and dereliction; "she tried to keep her children off the street"
2.environment - the area in which something exists or livesenvironment - the area in which something exists or lives; "the country--the flat agricultural surround"
ambiance, ambience - the atmosphere of an environment
medium - the surrounding environment; "fish require an aqueous medium"
setting, scene - the context and environment in which something is set; "the perfect setting for a ghost story"
element - the most favorable environment for a plant or animal; "water is the element of fishes"
habitat, home ground - the type of environment in which an organism or group normally lives or occurs; "a marine habitat"; "he felt safe on his home grounds"
melting pot - an environment in which many ideas and races are socially assimilated
parts - the local environment; "he hasn't been seen around these parts in years"
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.

environment

noun
1. surroundings, setting, conditions, situation, medium, scene, circumstances, territory, background, atmosphere, context, habitat, domain, milieu, locale The children were brought up in completely different environments.
2. habitat, home, surroundings, territory, terrain, locality, natural home the maintenance of a safe environment for marine mammals
the environment natural world, world, nature, creation, living world persuading people to respect the environment
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

environment

noun
1. Existing surroundings that affect an activity:
circumstance (often used in plural), condition (used in plural).
Slang: scene.
2. A surrounding area:
3. The totality of surrounding conditions and circumstances affecting growth or development:
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
بِيئَةبيئَه
prostředíokolí
miljøomgivelser
ympäristö
okruženjeekosustavokolina
környékkörnyezet
umhverfi
環境
환경
aplinka
vide
środowiskoekosystem
ambientclimaclimatecosistemmediu
okolje
miljönaturomgivningekosystem
สภาพแวดล้อม
môi trường

environment

[ɪnˈvaɪərənmənt] N
1. (= surroundings) (gen) → entorno m, ambiente m (Zool, Bot) → entorno m, medio m
a safe working environmentun entorno or un ambiente de trabajo seguro
a working-class environmentun entorno or ambiente de clase trabajadora
to observe animals in their natural environmentobservar a los animales en su entorno or medio natural
the environment (Ecol) → el medio ambiente
measures to protect the environmentmedidas fpl para proteger el medio ambiente
Department of the Environment (Brit) → Ministerio m del Medio Ambiente
2. (Comput) → entorno m
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

environment

[ɪnˈvaɪərənmənt] n
(= physical world) the environment → l'environnement m Department of the Environment
(= social world) → milieu m
a change in sb's environment → un changement dans l'environnement de qn
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

environment

nUmwelt f; (of town etc, physical surroundings)Umgebung f (also Comput); (= social, cultural surroundings)Milieu nt, → Umwelt f; working-class environmentArbeitermilieu nt; cultural/hostile environmentkulturelle/feindliche Umwelt; Department of the Environment (Brit) → Umweltministerium nt; Secretary (US) or Minister (Brit) of the EnvironmentUmweltminister(in) m(f)
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

environment

[ɪnˈvaɪərnmənt] nambiente m
Department of the Environment (Brit) → Ministero dell'Ambiente
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

environment

(inˈvaiərənmənt) noun
(a set of) surrounding conditions, especially those influencing development or growth. An unhappy home environment may drive a teenager to crime; We should protect the environment from destruction by modern chemicals etc.
enˌvironˈmental (-ˈmen-) adjective
environˈmentalist noun
a person who wants to stop the damage being done to the environment by humans.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.

environment

بِيئَة prostředí miljø Umwelt περιβάλλον entorno, medio ambiente ympäristö environnement okruženje ambiente 環境 환경 omgeving miljø środowisko ambiente окружение miljö สภาพแวดล้อม çevre môi trường 环境
Multilingual Translator © HarperCollins Publishers 2009

en·vi·ron·ment

n. ambiente, medio ambiente, entorno.
English-Spanish Medical Dictionary © Farlex 2012

environment

n (in general) medio ambiente; (immediate surroundings) entorno, ambiente m; something in your environment..algo en su entorno
English-Spanish/Spanish-English Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
References in classic literature ?
with that integral experience of things in the environment, out of which sensation is extracted by psychological analysis.
That she was seeing with different eyes and making the acquaintance of new conditions in herself that colored and changed her environment, she did not yet suspect.
Was not here a man trained in the same school of environment in which she had been trained--a man with social position and culture such as she had been taught to consider as the prime essentials to congenial association?
And he proceeded to get acquainted with what was--in short, to know and to adjust himself to his new environment.
White Fang grew stronger, heavier, and more compact, while his character was developing along the lines laid down by his heredity and his environment. His heredity was a life- stuff that may be likened to clay.
The added burden of the cache and the winter snow had been too much for it; the balance it had so long maintained with the forces of its environment had been overthrown; it had toppled and crashed to the ground, wrecking the cache and, in turn, overthrowing the balance with environment that the four men and eleven dogs had been maintaining.
What happened to me next on the sealing-schooner Ghost, as I strove to fit into my new environment, are matters of humiliation and pain.
The sudden darkness was comparative, not absolute, for gradually all objects of his environment became again visible.
Everything with them is 'the influence of environment,' and nothing else.
Regarding good and evil as purely relative values, it stands to reason that what may be bad or evil in a given man, relative to a certain environment, may actually be good if not highly virtuous in him relative to a certain other environment.
An animal perfectly in harmony with its environment is a perfect mechanism.
By entering into harmony with his environment, Ssu-K`ung T`u allowed his splendid vitality to find expression, and after the lapse of a thousand years these glowing pages torn from the book of life have drifted towards us like rose-leaves down a sombre stream.