Point \Point\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Pointed; p. pr. & vb. n.
Pointing.]
[Cf. F. pointer. See Point, n.]
1. To give a point to; to sharpen; to cut, forge, grind, or
file to an acute end; as, to point a dart, or a pencil.
Used also figuratively; as, to point a moral.
2. To direct toward an abject; to aim; as, to point a gun at
a wolf, or a cannon at a fort.
3. Hence, to direct the attention or notice of.
Whosoever should be guided through his battles by
Minerva, and pointed to every scene of them. --Pope.
4. To supply with punctuation marks; to punctuate; as, to
point a composition.
5. To mark (as Hebrew) with vowel points.
6. To give particular prominence to; to designate in a
special manner; to indicate, as if by pointing; as, the
error was pointed out. --Pope.
He points it, however, by no deviation from his
straightforward manner of speech. --Dickens.
7. To indicate or discover by a fixed look, as game.
8. (Masonry) To fill up and finish the joints of (a wall), by
introducing additional cement or mortar, and bringing it
to a smooth surface.
9. (Stone Cutting) To cut, as a surface, with a pointed tool.
To point a rope (Naut.), to taper and neatly finish off the
end by interweaving the nettles.
To point a sail (Naut.), to affix points through the eyelet
holes of the reefs.
To point off, to divide into periods or groups, or to
separate, by pointing, as figures.
To point the yards (of a vessel) (Naut.), to brace them so
that the wind shall strike the sails obliquely. --Totten.
Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
|