online
/ˈɔnlɑen/
Word Rarity
Common
Frequency: Zipf frequency 5.19 in modern English
6
Scrabble Score
6
Letters
2
Syllables
5
Unique Chars
Meaning
adj
Available on a computer system, even if not networked.
adj
Of a system: active, particularly building facilities (such as power) or a factory or power plant.
adj
Immersed in Internet culture. (Usually modified by an intensifier such as extremely or terminally)
Slang
adj
Able to process an input piece-by-piece without needing to have the entire input available to it from the start.
Example Sentences
- "Is this modem online?"
- "In America alone, people spent $170 billion on “direct marketing”—junk mail of both the physical and electronic varieties—last year. Yet of those who received unsolicited adverts through the post, only 3% bought anything as a result. If the bumf arrived electronically, the take-up rate was 0.1%. And for online adverts the “conversion” into sales was a minuscule 0.01%."
- "The online world was meant to be an open system but has become dominated by huge corporations."
- "I prefer to read online newspapers."
- "I'll be online tonight, so I'll be able to reply to your email."
- "Press the F1 key to access the online help."
Etymology
1950, from on + line.
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈɔnlɑen/
- British English: /ˈɒnlaɪn/
Usage
Inflected Forms
more online (comparative)
most online (superlative)
on-line (alternative, dated)
onlines (present, singular)
onlining (participle, present)
onlined (participle, past)
onlined (past)