Dictionaries › English

thing

Pronunciation: /θɪŋ/

The English word “thing” has 20 meanings listed here.

noun

  1. That which is considered to exist as a separate entity, object, quality or concept.
  2. A word, symbol, sign, or other referent that can be used to refer to any entity.
  3. An individual object or distinct entity.
  4. Whatever can be owned.
  5. Corporeal object.
  6. Possessions or equipment; stuff; gear.
  7. The latest fad or fashion.
  8. A custom or practice.
  9. A genuine concept, entity or phenomenon; something that actually exists (often contrary to expectation or belief).
  10. A unit or container, usually containing consumable goods.
  11. A problem, dilemma, or complicating factor.
  12. A penis.
  13. A vulva or vagina.
  14. A living being or creature.
  15. Used after a noun to refer dismissively to the situation surrounding the noun's referent.
  16. That which is favoured; personal preference.
  17. One's typical routine, habits, or manner.
  18. A public assembly or judicial council in a Germanic country.
  19. A romantic relationship.
  20. A romantic couple.

Etymology

From Middle English thing, from Old English þing, from Proto-West Germanic *þing, from Proto-Germanic *þingą. Cognate with Saterland Frisian Ding (“thing”), West Frisian ting, ding (“thing”), Dutch ding (“thing”), German Low German Ding (“thing”), German Ding (“thing”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk, and Swedish ting (“thing”), Faroese ting (“parliament, assembly”), Icelandic þing…

Keep exploring: in the interactive dictionary every word of a definition is a link. Open “thing” there

More English words

About this dictionary

The English dictionary on Glottosphere has 650,529 entries with a page. Browse the English dictionary.

Definitions are from Wiktionary, extracted by Kaikki.org, and are available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.