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in·dex

index

 
 
pronunciation:
In deks
parts of speech:
noun, transitive verb
features:
Word Combinations (noun, verb), Word History, Word Explorer
part of speech: noun
inflections: indexes, indices
definition 1: an alphabetical listing of subjects, names, specialized terms, and the like in a book, with page numbers given for each item indicating where these items are mentioned or discussed in the book.
If you look up Franklin Roosevelt in the index, it will lead you to the pages where he is mentioned in the textbook.
definition 2: something serving as a sign, indication, or measure.
The piano teacher's slight smile was an index of his satisfaction with a student's playing.These tasks serve as an index of a patient's cognitive functioning.
definition 3: (cap.) formerly, a list of reading material prohibited by the Roman Catholic Church.
definition 4: the numerical system by which consumer prices at different times or in different regions can be compared.
Our city is one of the most expensive places in the country to live according to the cost-of-living index.
definition 5: in computers, a means of locating a particular item of data in a sequenced arrangement of data.
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part of speech: transitive verb
inflections: indexes, indexing, indexed
definition 1: to make an index for (a book).
A graduate student is indexing the professor's new book.
definition 2: to make an index of, or place as an entry in an index.
The author indexed the textbook's most important information.
definition 3: to serve to indicate.
definition 4: to make adjustments to (prices or wages) according to changes in economic indicators such as cost of living.
definition 5: in computers, to arrange (data) so as to be able to retrieve any single item.
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Word History
Index was a Latin word that came from another Latin word, indicare, which means "to point out" or "indicate." In Latin, "index" could mean "forefinger," "pointer," "list," or anything that points to something else. The index of a book points you to the places in the book you are interested in.
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  book, number