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Webster 1913 Edition


Access

Ac-cess′

(#; 277)
,
Noun.
[F.
accès
, L.
accessus
, fr.
accedere
. See
Accede
.]
1.
A coming to, or near approach; admittance; admission; accessibility;
as, to gain
access
to a prince
.
I did repel his letters, and denied
His
access
to me.
Shakespeare
2.
The means, place, or way by which a thing may be approached; passage way;
as, the
access
is by a neck of land
.
“All access was thronged.”
Milton.
3.
Admission to sexual intercourse.
During coverture,
access
of the husband shall be presumed, unless the contrary be shown.
Blackstone.
4.
Increase by something added; addition;
as, an
access
of territory
. [In this sense accession is more generally used.]
I, from the influence of thy looks, receive
Access
in every virtue.
Milton.
5.
An onset, attack, or fit of disease.
The first
access
looked like an apoplexy.
Burnet.
6.
A paroxysm; a fit of passion; an outburst;
as, an
access
of fury
.
[A Gallicism]

Webster 1828 Edition


Access

ACCESS'

,
Noun.
[L. accessus, from accedo. See Accede.]
1.
A coming to; near approach; admittance; admission, as to gain access to a prince.
2.
Approach, or the way by which a thing may be approached; as, the access is by a neck of land.
3.
Means of approach; liberty to approach; implying previous obstacles.
By whom also we have access by faith. Rom. v.
4.
Admission to sexual intercourse.
During coverture, access of the husband shall be presumed, unless the contrary be shown.
5.
Addition; increase by something added; as an access of territory; but in this sense accession is more generally used.
6.
The return of a fit or paroxysm of disease, or fever. In this sense accession is generally used.

Definition 2024


access

access

English

Noun

access (countable and uncountable, plural accesses)

  1. (uncountable) A way or means of approaching or entering; an entrance; a passage.
    • All access was thronged. - Milton
  2. (uncountable) The act of approaching or entering; an advance.
  3. (uncountable) The right or ability of approaching or entering; admittance; admission; accessibility.
  4. (uncountable) The quality of being easy to approach or enter.
    • c. 1600, William Shakespeare, The Tragedy of Hamlet Act 2 Scene 1
      I did repel his fetters, and denied His access to me. - Shakespeare, Hamlet, II-i
    • 2011 September 20, Graeme Paton, “University access plan 'will fail', says Russell Group”, in Telegraph:
      Coalition plans to widen access to university will fail to get to the 'root cause' of the problem, according to the Russell Group.
  5. (uncountable) Admission to sexual intercourse.
  6. (countable) An increase by addition; accession; as, an access of territory.
    • I, from the influence of thy looks, receive access in every virtue. - Milton
  7. (countable) An onset, attack, or fit of disease; an ague fit.
    • The first access looked like an apoplexy. - Burnet
  8. (countable) An outburst of an emotion; a paroxysm; a fit of passion; as, an access of fury.
    • 1946, Arnold J. Toynbee, A Study of History (Abridgement of Volumes I-VI by D.C. Somervell)
      It appears that, about the middle of the fourth century of the Christian Era, the Germans in the Roman service started the new practice of retaining their native names; and this change of etiquette, which seems to have been abrupt, points to a sudden access of self-confidence and self-assurance in the souls of the barbarian personnel which had previously been content to 'go Roman' without reservations.
    Usage note: sometimes confused with excess
  9. (uncountable, law) The right of a non-custodial parent to visit their child.
  10. (uncountable, computing) The process of locating data in memory.
  11. (uncountable, Internet) Connection to or communication with a computer program or to the Internet.
Derived terms
Related terms
Translations

Etymology 2

  • First attested in 1962.

Verb

access (third-person singular simple present accesses, present participle accessing, simple past and past participle accessed)

  1. (transitive) To gain or obtain access to.
  2. (transitive, computing) To have access to (data).
    I can't access most of the data on the computer without a password.
Translations

References

  • access in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
  • access in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911
  • access at OneLook Dictionary Search

Statistics

Most common English words before 1923: ordinary · forms · complete · #949: access · ways · grave · serious