Definify.com

Webster 1913 Edition

In

In

,
p
rep.
[AS.
in
; akin to D. & G.
in
, Icel.
ī
, Sw. & Dan.
i
, OIr. & L.
in
, Gr.
ἐν
. √197. Cf. 1st
In-
,
Inn
.]
The specific signification of in is situation or place with respect to surrounding, environment, encompassment, etc. It is used with verbs signifying being, resting, or moving within limits, or within circumstances or conditions of any kind conceived of as limiting, confining, or investing, either wholly or in part. In its different applications, it approaches some of the meanings of, and sometimes is interchangeable with, within, into, on, at, of, and among.
It is used: –
1.
With reference to space or place;
as, he lives
in
Boston; he traveled
in
Italy; castles
in
the air.
The babe lying
in
a manger.
Luke ii. 16.
Thy sun sets weeping
in
the lowly west.
Shakespeare
Situated
in
the forty-first degree of latitude.
Gibbon.
Matter for censure
in
every page.
Macaulay.
2.
With reference to circumstances or conditions;
as, he is
in
difficulties; she stood
in
a blaze of light.
“Fettered in amorous chains.”
Shak.
Wrapt
in
sweet sounds, as
in
bright veils.
Shelley.
3.
With reference to a whole which includes or comprises the part spoken of;
as, the first
in
his family; the first regiment
in
the army.
Nine
in
ten of those who enter the ministry.
Swift.
4.
With reference to physical surrounding, personal states, etc., abstractly denoted;
as, I am
in
doubt; the room is
in
darkness; to live
in
fear.
When shall we three meet again,
In
thunder, lightning, or
in
rain?
Shakespeare
5.
With reference to character, reach, scope, or influence considered as establishing a limitation;
as, to be
in
one’s favor
.
“In sight of God's high throne.”
Milton.
Sounds inharmonious
in
themselves, and harsh.
Cowper.
6.
With reference to movement or tendency toward a certain limit or environment; – sometimes equivalent to into;
as, to put seed
in
the ground; to fall
in
love; to end
in
death; to put our trust
in
God.
He would not plunge his brother
in
despair.
Addison.
She had no jewels to deposit
in
their caskets.
Fielding.
7.
With reference to a limit of time;
as,
in
an hour; it happened
in
the last century;
in
all my life.
Syn. – Into; within; on; at. See
At
.

In

,
adv.
1.
Not out; within; inside. In, the preposition, becomes an adverb by omission of its object, leaving it as the representative of an adverbial phrase, the context indicating what the omitted object is;
as, he takes
in
the situation (i. e., he comprehends it in his mind); the Republicans were in (i. e., in office); in at one ear and out at the other (i. e., in or into the head); his side was in (i. e., in the turn at the bat); he came in (i. e., into the house)
.
Their vacation . . . falls
in
so pat with ours.
Lamb.
In certain cases in has an adjectival sense; as, the in train (i. e., the incoming train); compare up grade, down grade, undertow, after thought, etc.
2.
(Law)
With privilege or possession; – used to denote a holding, possession, or seisin;
as,
in
by descent;
in
by purchase;
in
of the seisin of her husband.
Burrill.
In and in breeding
.
See under
Breeding
.
–
In and out
(Naut.)
,
through and through; – said of a through bolt in a ship's side.
Knight.
–
To be in
,
to be at home;
as, Mrs. A.
is in
.
–
To come in
.
See under
Come
.

In

,
Noun.
[Usually in the plural.]
1.
One who is in office; – the opposite of
out
.
2.
A reëntrant angle; a nook or corner.
All the
ins and outs
of this neighborhood.
D. Jerrold.

In

(ĭn)
,
Verb.
T.
To inclose; to take in; to harvest.
[Obs.]
He that ears my land spares my team and gives me leave to
in
the crop.
Shakespeare

Webster 1828 Edition

In

IN

, a prefix, L. in, is used in composition as a particle of negation, like the English un, of which it seems to be a dialectical orthography; or it denotes within, into, or among, as in inbred, incase; or it serves only to augment or render emphatical the sense of the word to which it is prefixed, as in inclose, increase.
In, before l, is changed into il, as in illusion; and before r, into ir, as in irregular; and into im, before a labial, as in imbitter, immaterial, impatient.

IN

, prep. [L. in.] In denotes present or inclosed, surrounded by limits; as in a house; in a fort; in a city. It denotes a state of being mixed, as sugar in tea; or combined, as carbonic acid in coal, or latent heat in air. It denotes present in any state; as in sickness or health. It denotes present in time; as in that hour or day. The uses of in, however, cannot, in all cases, be defined by equivalent words, except by explaining the phrase in which it is used; as in deed; in fact; in essence; in quality; in reason; in courage; in spirits, &c. A man in spirits or good courage, denotes one who possesses at the time spirits or courage; in reason is equivalent to with reason; one in ten denotes one of that number, and we say also one of ten, and one out of ten.
In the name, is used in phrases of invoking, swearing, declaring, praying, &c. In prayer, it denotes by virtue of, or for the sake of. In the name of the people, denotes on their behalf or part; in their stead, or for their sake.
In, in many cases, is equivalent to on. This use of the word is frequent in the Scriptures; as, let fowls multiply in the earth. This use is more frequent in England than in America. We generally use on, in all similar phrases.
In signifies by or through. In thee shall all nations be blessed. I am glorified in them.
In that, is sometimes equivalent to because.
Some things they do in that they are men; some things in that they are men misled and blinded with error.
In these and similar phrases, that is an antecedent, substitute, or pronoun relating to the subsequent part of the sentence, or the subsequent clause. God commendeth his love towards us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. That is, in the fact stated in the latter clause, for which that is the substitute. Rom.5.
In as much, seeing; seeing that; this being the fact. I will ride for health, inasmuch as I am infirm.
In is often used without the noun to which it properly belongs. I care not who is in, or who is out, that is, in office, or out of office. Come in, that is, into the house or other place. Who has or will come in, that is, into office. A vessel has come in, that is, into port, or has arrived.
To be or keep in with, to be close or near.
Keep the ship in with the land.

Definition 2024

In

In

See also: Appendix:Variations of "in"

Translingual

Symbol

In

  1. (chemistry) Symbol for indium.

in

in

See also: Appendix:Variations of "in"

English

A green pepper in a black rectangle.
A cat in a box.

Preposition

in

  1. Used to indicate location, inclusion, or position within spatial, temporal or other limits
    1. Contained by.
      The dog is in the kennel.‎
    2. Within.
    3. Surrounded by.
      We are in the enemy camp.   Her plane is in the air.‎
    4. Part of; a member of.
      One in a million.‎
    5. Pertaining to (that particular thing).
      He has passed in English.‎
    6. At the end of a period of time.
      They said they would call us in a week.‎
    7. Within a certain elapsed time
      Are you able to finish this in three hours?   The massacre resulted in over 1000 deaths in three hours.‎
    8. During (said of periods of time).
      in the first week of December;  Easter falls in the fourth lunar month;   The country reached a high level of prosperity in his first term.‎
  2. Into.
    • 2011 January 8, Paul Fletcher, “Stevenage 3-1 Newcastle”, in BBC:
      The ball was accidentally kicked in Kevin Nolan's face in the opening seconds of the contest - an incident that set the tone for an extremely uncomfortable encounter for the Premier League side.
    Less water gets in your boots this way.‎
  3. used to indicate limit, qualification, condition, or circumstance
    • 1898, J. Meade Falkner, Moonfleet Chapter 4
      In returning to the vault, I had no very sure purpose in mind; only a vague surmise that this finding of Blackbeard's coffin would somehow lead to the finding of his treasure.
    In replacing the faucet washers, he felt he was making his contribution to the environment.‎
    1. Indicating an order or arrangement.
      My fat rolls around in folds.‎
    2. Denoting a state of the subject.
      He stalked away in anger.   John is in a coma.‎
    3. Indicates, connotatively, a place-like form of someone's (or something's) personality, as his, her or its psychic and physical characteristics.
      You've got a friend in me.   He's met his match in her.‎
  4. used to indicate means, medium, format, genre, or instrumentality
    1. (of something offered or given in an exchange) In the form of, in the denomination of.
      Please pay me in cash — preferably in tens and twenties.‎
      The deposit can be in any legal tender, even in gold.‎
      Her generosity was rewarded in the success of its recipients.
      • 2014, Carla Bethmann, Clean, Friendly, Profitable?: Tourism, page 114:
        […] tourists sometimes attempt to pay in euros or British pounds.
    2. used to indicate medium, format, or genre
      1. Indicates a language, script, tone, etc. of a text, speech, etc.
        Beethoven's "Symphony No. 5" in C minor is among his most popular.   His speech was in French, but was simultaneously translated into eight languages.‎
      2. Indicates a language, script, tone, etc. of writing, speaking, etc.
        When you write in cursive, it's illegible.   He spoke in French, but his speech was simultaneously translated into eight languages.‎
Hyponyms
  • in-memory
Derived terms
Related terms
Translations

Verb

in ‎(third-person singular simple present ins, present participle inning, simple past and past participle inned)

  1. (obsolete, transitive) To enclose.
  2. (obsolete, transitive) To take in; to harvest.
    • (Can we date this quote?) Shakespeare
      He that ears my land spares my team and gives me leave to in the crop.

Etymology 2

Old English inne

Adverb

in ‎(not comparable)

  1. (not comparable) Located indoors, especially at home or the office, or inside something.
    Is Mr. Smith in?‎
  2. Moving to the interior of a defined space, such as a building or room.
    Suddenly a strange man walked in.‎
    • 1879, Richard Jefferies, The Amateur Poacher, chapterII:
      Orion hit a rabbit once; but though sore wounded it got to the bury, and, struggling in, the arrow caught the side of the hole and was drawn out. Indeed, a nail filed sharp is not of much avail as an arrowhead; you must have it barbed, and that was a little beyond our skill.
  3. (sports) Still eligible to play, e.g. able to bat in cricket and baseball.
    He went for the wild toss but wasn't able to stay in.‎
  4. (Britain) Abbreviation of in aid of.
    What's that in?‎
  5. After the beginning of something.
    • 2011 October 1, Phil Dawkes, “Sunderland 2-2 West Brom”, in BBC Sport:
      The Black Cats had a mountain to climb after James Morrison's header and Shane Long's neat side-foot finish gave Albion a 2-0 lead five minutes in.
Translations

Noun

in ‎(plural ins)

  1. A position of power or a way to get it.
    His parents got him an in with the company
  2. (sports) The state of a batter/batsman who is currently batting – see innings
  3. A re-entrant angle; a nook or corner.
Antonyms
Translations

Adjective

in ‎(comparative more in, superlative most in)

  1. In fashion; popular.
    Skirts are in this year.
  2. Incoming.
    the in train
  3. (nautical, of the sails of a vessel) Furled or stowed.
  4. (law) With privilege or possession; used to denote a holding, possession, or seisin.
    in by descent; in by purchase; in of the seisin of her husband
    (Can we find and add a quotation of Burrill to this entry?)
  5. (cricket) Currently batting.
Translations

Etymology 3

Abbreviation of inch.

Noun

in ‎(plural ins)

  1. Inch.

Statistics

Most common English words before 1923: of · and · to · #5: in · I · that · was

References

  • Andrea Tyler and Vyvyan Evans, "Bounded landmarks", in The Semantics of English Prepositions: Spatial Scenes, Embodied Meaning and Cognition, Cambridge University Press, 2003, 0-521-81430 8

Anagrams

Afrikaans

Etymology

From Dutch in.

Adverb

in

  1. in; inside; within

Preposition

in

  1. in
  2. into

Ayomán

Noun

in

  1. water

References

  • Luis Oramas, Materiales para el estudio de los dialectos Ayamán, Gayón, Jirajara, Ajagua (1916)

Baure

Noun

in

  1. water

References

  • Swintha Danielsen, Baure: An Arawak Language of Bolivia

Chuukese

Noun

in

  1. mother

Classical Nahuatl

Article

in

  1. the

Pronoun

in, īn

  1. (demonstrative) this; these

Related terms

Derived terms

References

  • Michel Launey; Christopher Mackay (2011) An Introduction to Classical Nahuatl, Amazon Kindle: Cambridge University Press, pages Loc 1408

Danish

Adjective

in ‎(neuter in, e-form in)

  1. (colloquial) fashionable, in

Antonyms

Dutch

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ɪn/
  • Rhymes: -ɪn

Etymology

From Old Dutch in, from Proto-Germanic *in, from Proto-Indo-European *en.

Adverb

in

  1. in, inside
  2. (postpositional) into
    De jongen rende het huis in.‎
    The boy ran into the house.

Preposition

in

  1. in; expressing containment.
    De geest in de fles‎
    the genie in the bottle

Inflection

Synonyms

Antonyms

Derived terms

Adjective

in ‎(used only predicatively, not comparable)

  1. in style

Verb

in

  1. first-person singular present indicative of innen
  2. imperative of innen

Friulian

Etymology

From Latin in.

Preposition

in

  1. in

German

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ʔɪn/

Etymology 1

From Old High German in, from Proto-Germanic *in, from Proto-Indo-European *en.

Preposition

in

  1. (in + dative) in; within; at; contained by
    Es ist im Haus.‎ ― It is in the house.
  2. (in + dative) pertaining to
  3. (in + accusative) into
    Er geht ins Haus.‎ ― He goes into the house.
Usage notes

The preposition in is used with accusative case if the verb shows movement from one place to another, whereas it is used with dative case if the verb shows location.

Derived terms
  • (in + dem) im m, n
  • (in + das) ins n
  • in der Zwickmühle stecken

Etymology 2

From English in.

Adjective

in ‎(not comparable)

  1. in, popular
Declension

Gothic

Romanization

in

  1. Romanization of 𐌹𐌽

Interlingua

Preposition

in

  1. in

Irish

Preposition

in ‎(plus dative, triggers eclipsis)

  1. Alternative form of i

Usage notes

This variant of i is used before vowel-initial words, before bhur ‎(“your pl”), before dhá ‎(“two”), before titles of books, films, and the like, and before foreign words that resist mutation.

In older texts, the n is spelled together with a vowel-initial word (e.g. i n-aice le instead of modern in aice le ‎(“beside”) and i nÉirinn or i n-Éirinn instead of modern in Éirinn ‎(“in Ireland”). Also in older texts, in bhur may be spelled i nbhur.

Istriot

Preposition

in

  1. in; on
    • 1877, Antonio Ive, Canti popolari istriani: raccolti a Rovigno, volume 5, Ermanno Loescher, page 99:
      Cume li va puleîto in alto mare!
      How they row well on the high seas!

Italian

Etymology

From Latin in.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈin/, [ˈin̺]

Preposition

in

  1. in
    Ho qualcosa in tasca.‎ ― I have got something in my pocket.
    Partirò in primavera.‎ ― I will be leaving in spring.
  2. to
    Sono andato in panetteria.‎ ― I went to the bakery.
  3. into
  4. by
    Vado a scuola in autobus.‎ ― I go to school by bus.
  5. on
    Ho messo un cappello in testa.‎ ― I put a hat on my head.
    Metti il pane in tavola.‎ ― Put the bread on the table.

Usage notes

  • When followed by the definite article, in is combined with the article to produce the following combined forms:
in + article Combined form
in + il nel
in + lo nello
in + l' nell'
in + i nei
in + gli negli
in + la nella
in + le nelle

Anagrams

Japanese

Romanization

in

  1. rōmaji reading of いん

Ladin

Preposition

in

  1. in

Latin

Alternative forms

Etymology

From Proto-Italic *en, from Proto-Indo-European *h₁én ‎(“in”). Cognates include Ancient Greek ἐν ‎(en), Old Prussian en and Old English in (English in).

Pronunciation

Preposition

in

  1. (+ ablative) in, at, on (space)
    • 29 bc. Vergil. Georgics, III
      omne adeo genvs in terris hominvmqve ferarvmqve
      et genvs æqvorevm pecvdes pictæqve volvcres
      in fvrias ignemqve rvvnt
      So far does every species on earth of man and beast,
      whether the aquatic species, livestock, or painted-winged,
      collapse into the frenzies and the fire.
  2. (+ dative) within (time)
  3. (+ accusative) into, to
    • 29 bc. Vergil. Georgics, III
      omne adeo genvs in terris hominvmqve ferarvmqve
      et genvs æqvorevm pecvdes pictæqve volvcres
      in fvrias ignemqve rvvnt
      So far does every species on earth of man and beast,
      whether the aquatic species, livestock, or painted-winged,
      collapse into the frenzies and the fire.
    • 1774, Finnur Jónsson, Historia Ecclesiastica Islandiæ 1
      De introductione religionis Christianæ in Islandiam.
      On the introduction of Christianity to Iceland.
  4. (+ accusative) about
  5. (+ accusative) according to
  6. (+ accusative) against

Derived terms

Descendants

  • Aromanian: ãn
  • Catalan: en
  • Dalmatian: en
  • Franco-Provençal: en
  • French: en
  • Friulian: in
  • Italian: in
  • Occitan: en
  • Portuguese: em
  • Romanian: în
  • Romansch: en
  • Sicilian: n
  • Spanish: en

Quotations

  • For usage examples of this term, see Citations:in.

Mapudungun

Verb

in ‎(using Raguileo Alphabet)

  1. To eat.
  2. First-person singular realis mood form of in.

See also

References

  • Wixaleyiñ: Mapucezugun-wigkazugun pici hemvlcijka (Wixaleyiñ: Small Mapudungun-Spanish dictionary), Beretta, Marta; Cañumil, Dario; Cañumil, Tulio, 2008.

Middle Dutch

Etymology

From Old Dutch in, from Proto-Germanic *in.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ɪn/

Preposition

in

  1. in, inside, within
  2. into
  3. within (a time period)
  4. in (a condition)

Descendants

  • Dutch: in

Min Nan

trad. and simpl.
𪜶

Pronunciation

Pronoun

in ‎(POJ, traditional and simplified 𪜶)

  1. they
  2. their
  3. them

See also

References

Mohegan-Pequot

Noun

in

  1. man (adult male)

References

  • A Vocabulary of Mohegan-Pequot (John D. Prince, Frank G. Speck)

Northern Sami

Verb

in

  1. first-person singular present of ii

Novial

Preposition

in

  1. in

Old English

Etymology

From Proto-Germanic *in, whence also Old Saxon and Old High German in, Old Norse í. Ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *en.

Preposition

in

  1. in

Descendants

  • English: in

Old High German

Etymology

From Proto-Germanic *in, whence also Old English in, Old Norse í. Ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *en.

Preposition

in

  1. in

Descendants

  • German: in

Old Irish

Etymology 1

From Proto-Celtic *sindos ‎(“this”), from Proto-Indo-European *sḗm ‎(“one”) or *só ‎(“this”); weak doublet of sin ‎(“this”).

Article

in

  1. the (masculine singular nominative/accusative; feminine singular accusative; masculine/feminine/neuter dual nominative/accusative/genitive)
    • c. 800, Würzburg Glosses on the Pauline Epistles, published in Thesaurus Palaeohibernicus (reprinted 1987, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies), edited and with translations by Whitley Stokes and John Strachan, vol. I, pp. 499–712, Wb. 13d7
      Beóigidir in spirut in corp in ḟect so.
      "The spirit now quickens the body."
  2. Alternative spelling of ind
    • c. 800, Würzburg Glosses on the Pauline Epistles, published in Thesaurus Palaeohibernicus (reprinted 1987, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies), edited and with translations by Whitley Stokes and John Strachan, vol. I, pp. 499–712, Wb. 13d7
      Beóigidir in spirut in corp in ḟect so.
      "The spirit now quickens the body."
Usage notes
  • Triggers nasalization of the following noun in the masculine and feminine singular accusative.
  • Triggers lenition of the following noun as an alternative spelling of ind.
Declension
Case Singular Dual Plural
Masculine Feminine Neuter Masculine Feminine Neuter Masculine Feminine Neuter
Nominative in
int (before vowels) 		ind
int (before ṡ) 		a in dá in dí in dá ind inna
Accusative in inna
Genitive ind
int (before ṡ) 		inna ind
int (before ṡ) 		in dá
Dative dond; dont (before ṡ)
cossind; cossint (before ṡ)
etc. 		don dib
cossin dib
etc. 		donaib
cosnaib
etc.
Note: The dative is used only after a preposition, which forms a contraction with the definite article, e.g. dond ‎(“to the”), cossind ‎(“with the”), etc.
Synonyms
  • int (masculine singular nominative, used before a vowel)
Derived terms
Descendants
  • Irish: an
  • Scottish Gaelic: an
  • Manx: yn

Etymology 2

Particle

in (triggers eclipsis)

  1. interrogative particle

Verb

in (triggers eclipsis)

  1. (interrogative) is...?
Related terms
  • indat ‎(“are...?”)

Old Saxon

Etymology

From Proto-Germanic *in, whence also Old High German in, Old English in, Old Norse í. Ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *en.

Preposition

in

  1. in

Pennsylvania German

Preposition

in

  1. in

Portuguese

Etymology 1

Borrowing from Latin in ‎(“in”).

Preposition

in

  1. found in the given reference
Related terms

Etymology 2

Borrowing from English in.

Adjective

in ‎(plural in, comparable)

  1. in fashion
Synonyms

Romanian

Etymology

From Latin līnum ‎(“flax”).

Noun

in n ‎(plural inuri)

  1. flax

Declension

Related terms

Romansch

Alternative forms

  • (Sutsilvan, Surmiran) egn
  • (Puter, Vallader) ün

Etymology

From Latin unus.

Article

in m ‎(feminine ina)

  1. (cardinal, Rumantsch Grischun, Sursilvan) a, an

Number

in m ‎(feminine ina)

  1. (cardinal, Rumantsch Grischun, Sursilvan) one

Slovene

Etymology

From Proto-Slavic *i (from Proto-Indo-European *h₁ey) and an emphasising particle *no.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /in/
  • Tonal orthography: in

Conjunction

in

  1. and

Synonyms

  • i (dialectal)

Swedish

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ɪn/

Adverb

in

  1. into, the direction "from out to in"

Antonyms

See also

Turkish

Noun

in ‎(definite accusative ini, plural inler)

  1. cave

Declension

Verb

in

  1. second-person singular imperative of inmek

Vietnamese

Etymology

Non-Sino-Vietnamese reading of Chinese 印 (“to print”; SV: ấn)

Pronunciation

Verb

in

  1. to print

Derived terms

Volapük

Preposition

in

  1. in

Welsh

Alternative forms

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ɪn/

Pronoun

in

  1. (literary) first-person plural of i

West Frisian

Etymology

Shortened from ien ‎(“one”).

Article

in

  1. a, an

Etymology

From Middle English, from Old English in, from Proto-Germanic *in (whence German in, Dutch in, Danish i), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₁én, whence also ultimately Latin in, Irish i, Welsh yn, Ancient Greek ἐν ‎(en) (modern Greek εν ‎(en)), Old Armenian ի ‎(i), Old Church Slavonic vŭ(n)-, Russian в ‎(v), Old Prussian en, Lithuanian į.

Pronunciation

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