OPTIC

ocular, optic, optical, visual

(adjective) relating to or using sight; “ocular inspection”; “an optical illusion”; “visual powers”; “visual navigation”

ocular, optic, optical, ophthalmic

(adjective) of or relating to or resembling the eye; “ocular muscles”; “an ocular organ”; “ocular diseases”; “the optic (or optical) axis of the eye”; “an ocular spot is a pigmented organ or part believed to be sensitive to light”; “ophthalmic defect”

eye, oculus, optic

(noun) the organ of sight

Source: WordNet® 3.1


Etymology

Adjective

optic (not comparable)

Of, or relating to the eye or to vision.

Of, or relating to optics or optical instruments.

Noun

optic (plural optics)

(now humorous) An eye.

A lens or other part of an optical instrument that interacts with light.

A measuring device with a small window, attached to an upside-down bottle, used to dispense alcoholic drinks in a bar.

Anagrams

• -topic, cop it, picot, topic

Source: Wiktionary


Op"tic, n. Etym: [From Optic, a.]

1. The organ of sight; an eye. The difference is as great between The optics seeing, as the object seen. Pope.

2. An eyeglass. [Obs.] Herbert.

Op"tic, Op"tic*al, a. Etym: [F. optique, Gr. oculus eye. See Ocular, Eye, and cf. Canopy, Ophthalmia.]

1. Of or pertaining to vision or sight. The moon, whose orb Through optic glass the Tuscan artist views. Milton.

2. Of or pertaining to the eye; ocular; as, the optic nerves (the first pair of cranial nerves) which are distributed to the retina. See Illust. of Brain, and Eye.

3. Relating to the science of optics; as, optical works. Optic angle (Opt.), the angle included between the optic axes of the two eyes when directed to the same point; -- sometimes called binocular parallax.

– Optic axis. (Opt.) (a) A line drawn through the center of the eye perpendicular to its anterior and posterior surfaces. In a normal eye it is in the direction of the optic axis that objects are most distinctly seen. (b) The line in a doubly refracting crystal, in the direction of which no double refraction occurs. A uniaxial crystal has one such line, a biaxial crystal has two.

– Optical circle (Opt.), a graduated circle used for the measurement of angles in optical experiments.

– Optical square, a surveyor's instrument with reflectors for laying off right angles.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



RESET




Word of the Day

14 April 2025

FOCUS

(noun) maximum clarity or distinctness of an image rendered by an optical system; “in focus”; “out of focus”


coffee icon

Coffee Trivia

Contrary to popular belief, coffee beans are not technically beans. They are referred to as such because of their resemblance to legumes. A coffee bean is a seed of the Coffea plant and the source for coffee. It is the pit inside the red or purple fruit, often referred to as a cherry. Just like ordinary cherries, the coffee fruit is also a so-called stone fruit.

coffee icon