Context

English

Etymology

From Latin contextus.

Pronunciation

• (RP) IPA: /ˈkɒntɛkst/, SAMPA: /"kQntEkst/
• (GenAm) IPA: /ˈkɑːntɛkst/, SAMPA: /"kAntEkst/

Noun

Context (plural Contexts)

1. (linguistics) the text in which a word or passage appears and which helps ascertain its meaning
2. the surroundings, circumstances, environment, background or settings which determine, specify, or clarify the meaning of an event

   In what context did your attack on him happen? - We had a pretty tense relationship at the time, and when he insulted me I snapped.

3. (archaeology) The surroundings and environment in which an artifact is found and which may provide important clues about the artifact's function and/or cultural meaning.

Antonyms

• isolation

Derived terms

context-dependent context-free context-sensitive in context, compare in isolation

keyword in context, KWIC keyword out of context, KWOC out of context take out of context

Thesaurus

alentours, ambiance, ambience, ambit, background, borderlands, circle, circuit, circumambiencies, circumjacencies, circumstances, compass, entourage, environing circumstances, environment, environs, existing conditions, frame of reference, framework, full particulars, gestalt, habitat, ins and outs, milieu, neighborhood, outposts, outskirts, perimeter, periphery, precincts, purlieus, set of conditions, setting, situation, status quo, structure, suburbs, surround, surroundings, total environment, total situation, vicinage, vicinity, whole picture

Translations

text in which a word appears

Arabic: سياق (ar) (siyaaq) m., قرنية (ar) (qariiba) f. Bulgarian: контекст (bg) (kontékst) m. Chinese: Mandarin: 上下文 (cmn) (shàngxiàwén), 語境 (cmn), 语境 (cmn) (yǔjìng), 前後文 (cmn), 前后文 (cmn) (qiánhòuwén) Czech: kontext (cs) Dutch: context (nl) m. Esperanto: kunteksto (eo) Finnish: konteksti (fi), asiayhteys (fi), yhteys (fi) French: contexte (fr) m. German: Kontext (de) m.

Irish: comhthéacs (ga) m. Italian: contesto (it) m. Japanese: 文脈 (ja) (bunmyaku), 前後関係 (ja) (zengokankei) Korean: 문맥 (ko) (munmaek) (文脈 (ko)), 맥락 (ko) (maekrak) (脈絡 (ko)) Manx: co-lhaih (gv), cohecks (gv) Norwegian: sammenheng (no) m., kontekst (no) m. Polish: kontekst (pl) m. Portuguese: contexto (pt) m. Russian: контекст (ru) (kontékst) m. Scottish Gaelic: co-theacsa (gd) m. Spanish: contexto (es) m.

circumstances or settings

Arabic: حالة (ar) (Haala) f. Bulgarian: обстановка (bg) (obstanóvka) f., ситуация (bg) (situácija) f. Chinese: Mandarin: 場合 (cmn), 场合 (cmn) (chǎnghé), 情況 (cmn), 情况 (cmn) (qíngkuàng), 背景 (cmn) (bèijǐng), 環境 (cmn), 环境 (cmn) (huánjìng) Dutch: context (nl) m. Finnish: asiayhteys (fi), yhteys (fi) German: Kontext (de) m. Hebrew: הקשר (heqsher) m. Irish: comhthéacs (ga) m. Italian: contesto (it) m.

Japanese: 前後関係 (ja) (zengokankei), 状況 (ja) (jōkyō) Korean: 맥락 (ko) (maekrak) (脈絡 (ko)), 짜임새 (ko) (jjaimsae), 바탕 (ko) (batang) Norwegian: sammenheng (no) m., kontekst (no) m. Polish: kontekst (pl) m. Portuguese: contexto (pt) m. Russian: обстановка (ru) (obstanóvka) f., ситуация (ru) (situácija) f. Scottish Gaelic: co-theacsa (gd) m. Swedish: sammanhang (sv) Telugu: సందర్భం (te) (sandarbham)

Quotations

• For examples of the usage of this term see the citations page.

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Catalan

Noun

Context m. (plural Contexts)

1. context