DIMENSIONS: EVALUATION / Perspective
R E F E R E N C E S
Direction n. 1. the act or an instance of directing. 2. the line along which anything lies, faces, moves, etc., with reference to the point or region toward which it is directed. 3. the point or region itself: the direction is north. 4. a position on a line extending from a specific point toward a point of the compass or toward the nadir or the zenith. 5. a line of thought or action or a tendency or inclination; the direction of contemporary thought. 6. Instruction or guidance for making, using, etc.: directions for baking a cake. 7. order; command. 8. management; control; guidance; supervision: a company under good direction. 9. a directorate. 10. the name and address of the intended recipient as written on a letter, package, etc. 11. decisions in a stage or film production as to a stage business, speaking of lines, lighting, and general presentation. 12. the technique, act, or business of making such decisions, managing and training a cast of actors, etc. 13. the technique, act, or business of directing an orchestra, play, motion picture, etc. 14. Music. a symbol or phrase which indicates in a score the proper tempo, style of performance, mood, etc. [ME directoun < L direction- )s. of directio) a making straight]
Direct [ME direct(en) < L direct(us) made straight [ptp. of dirigere to arrange] . . . . v.t. 1. to guide b advice, helpful information, instruction, etc. 2. to regulate the course of . . . . 7. to aim or send toward a place of object: to direct radio waves around the globe. 8. to cause to move, act, or work toward a given end or result [often fol. by to or toward]: He directed his energies toward the accomplishment of the work. . . . -Syn. 1. See quide. 4. Direct, Order, Command mean to issue instructions . . . . Direct suggests also giving explanations or advice; the emphasis is not on the authority of the director, but on steps necessary for the accomplishing of a purpose. Order connotes a personal relationship, in which a person in a superior position imperatively instructs a subordinate [or subordinates] to do something. Command, less personal and, often, less specific in detail, suggests greater formality and sometimes, a more fixed authority on the part of the superior. -Ant. 14. devious, roundabout. 18. open, sincere, outspoken. [Urdang, Laurence, ed. Random House Dictionary of The English Language. New York: Random House,1968.]
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