7 definitions found
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Act \Act\, v. i.
1. To exert power; to produce an effect; as, the stomach acts
upon food.
2. To perform actions; to fulfill functions; to put forth
energy; to move, as opposed to remaining at rest; to carry
into effect a determination of the will.
He hangs between, in doubt to act or rest. --Pope.
3. To behave or conduct, as in morals, private duties, or
public offices; to bear or deport one's self; as, we know
not why he has acted so.
4. To perform on the stage; to represent a character.
To show the world how Garrick did not act. --Cowper.
{To act as} or {for}, to do the work of; to serve as.
{To act on}, to regulate one's conduct according to.
{To act up to}, to equal in action; to fulfill in practice;
as, he has acted up to his engagement or his advantages.
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Act \Act\ ([a^]kt), n. [L. actus, fr. agere to drive, do: cf. F.
acte. See {Agent}.]
1. That which is done or doing; the exercise of power, or the
effect, of which power exerted is the cause; a
performance; a deed.
That best portion of a good man's life, His little,
nameless, unremembered acts Of kindness and of love.
--Wordsworth.
Hence, in specific uses:
(a) The result of public deliberation; the decision or
determination of a legislative body, council, court of
justice, etc.; a decree, edit, law, judgment, resolve,
award; as, an act of Parliament, or of Congress.
(b) A formal solemn writing, expressing that something has
been done. --Abbott.
(c) A performance of part of a play; one of the principal
divisions of a play or dramatic work in which a
certain definite part of the action is completed.
(d) A thesis maintained in public, in some English
universities, by a candidate for a degree, or to show
the proficiency of a student.
2. A state of reality or real existence as opposed to a
possibility or possible existence. [Obs.]
The seeds of plants are not at first in act, but in
possibility, what they afterward grow to be.
--Hooker.
3. Process of doing; action. In act, in the very doing; on
the point of (doing). ``In act to shoot.'' --Dryden.
This woman was taken . . . in the very act. --John
viii. 4.
{Act of attainder}. (Law) See {Attainder}.
{Act of bankruptcy} (Law), an act of a debtor which renders
him liable to be adjudged a bankrupt.
{Act of faith}. (Ch. Hist.) See {Auto-da-F['e]}.
{Act of God} (Law), an inevitable accident; such
extraordinary interruption of the usual course of events
as is not to be looked for in advance, and against which
ordinary prudence could not guard.
{Act of grace}, an expression often used to designate an act
declaring pardon or amnesty to numerous offenders, as at
the beginning of a new reign.
{Act of indemnity}, a statute passed for the protection of
those who have committed some illegal act subjecting them
to penalties. --Abbott.
{Act in pais}, a thing done out of court (anciently, in the
country), and not a matter of record.
Syn: See {Action}.
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Act \Act\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Acted}; p. pr. & vb. n.
{Acting}.] [L. actus, p. p. of agere to drive, lead, do; but
influenced by E. act, n.]
1. To move to action; to actuate; to animate. [Obs.]
Self-love, the spring of motion, acts the soul.
--Pope.
2. To perform; to execute; to do. [Archaic]
That we act our temporal affairs with a desire no
greater than our necessity. --Jer. Taylor.
Industry doth beget by producing good habits, and
facility of acting things expedient for us to do.
--Barrow.
Uplifted hands that at convenient times Could act
extortion and the worst of crimes. --Cowper.
3. To perform, as an actor; to represent dramatically on the
stage.
4. To assume the office or character of; to play; to
personate; as, to act the hero.
5. To feign or counterfeit; to simulate.
With acted fear the villain thus pursued. --Dryden.
{To act a part}, to sustain the part of one of the characters
in a play; hence, to simulate; to dissemble.
{To act the part of}, to take the character of; to fulfill
the duties of.
From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:
act
n 1: a legal document codifying the result of deliberations of a
committee or society or legislative body [syn: {enactment}]
2: something that people do or cause to happen [syn: {human
action}, {human activity}]
3: a subdivision of a play or opera or ballet
4: a short theatrical performance that is part of a longer
program; "he did his act three times every evening"; "she
had a catchy little routine"; "it was one of the best
numbers he ever did" [syn: {routine}, {number}, {turn}, {bit}]
5: a manifestation of insincerity; "he put on quite an act for
her benefit"
v 1: perform an action, or work out or perform (an action);
"think before you act"; "We must move quickly"; "The
governor should act on the new energy bill"; "The nanny
acted quickly by grabbing the toddler and covering him
with a wet towel" [syn: {move}] [ant: {refrain}]
2: behave in a certain manner; show a certain behavior; conduct
or comport oneself; "You should act like an adult"; "Don't
behave like a fool"; "What makes her do this way?"; "The
dog acts ferocious, but he is really afraid of people"
[syn: {behave}, {do}]
3: play a role or part; "Gielgud played Hamlet"; "She wants to
act Lady Macbeth, but she is too young for the role"; "She
played the servant to her husband's master" [syn: {play},
{represent}]
4: discharge one's duties; "She acts as the chair"; "In what
capacity are you acting?"
5: pretend to have certain qualities or state of mind; "He
acted the idiot"; "She plays deaf when the news are bad"
[syn: {play}, {act as}]
6: be suitable for theatrical performance; "This scene acts
well"
7: have an effect or outcome; often the one desired or
expected; "The voting process doesn't work as well as
people thought"; "How does your idea work in practice?";
"This method doesn't work"; "The breaks of my new car act
quickly"; "The medicine works only if you take it with a
lot of water" [syn: {work}]
8: be engaged in an activity, often for no particular purpose
other than pleasure
9: behave unnaturally or affectedly; "She's just acting" [syn:
{dissemble}, {pretend}]
10: perform on a stage or theater; "She acts in this play"; "He
acted in `Julius Caesar'"; "I played in `A Christmas
Carol'" [syn: {play}, {roleplay}, {playact}]
From The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing (27 SEP 03) [foldoc]:
ACT
1. <software> {Annual Change Traffic}.
2. <company> {Ada Core Technologies}.
(1999-06-24)
From The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing (27 SEP 03) [foldoc]:
ACT++
<language> A {concurrent} extension of {C++} based on
{actors}.
["ACT++: Building a Concurrent C++ With Actors", D.G. Kafura
TR89-18, VPI, 1989].
(1994-11-08)
From Virtual Entity of Relevant Acronyms (Version 1.9, June 2002) [vera]:
ACT
Architecture Characterization Template (DISA)