- Straightest
- Straight Straight, a. [Compar. {Straighter}; superl.
{Straightest}.] [OE. strei?t, properly p. p. of strecchen to
stretch, AS. streht, p. p. of streccan to stretch, to extend.
See {Stretch}.]
1. Right, in a mathematical sense; passing from one point to
another by the nearest course; direct; not deviating or
crooked; as, a straight line or course; a straight piece
of timber.
[1913 Webster]
And the crooked shall be made straight. --Isa. xl. 4. [1913 Webster]
There are many several sorts of crooked lines, but there is only one which is straight. --Dryden. [1913 Webster]
2. (Bot.) Approximately straight; not much curved; as, straight ribs are such as pass from the base of a leaf to the apex, with a small curve. [1913 Webster]
3. (Card Playing) Composed of cards which constitute a regular sequence, as the ace, king, queen, jack, and ten-spot; as, a straight hand; a straight flush. [1913 Webster]
4. Conforming to justice and rectitude; not deviating from truth or fairness; upright; as, straight dealing. [1913 Webster]
5. Unmixed; undiluted; as, to take liquor straight. [Slang] [1913 Webster]
6. Making no exceptions or deviations in one's support of the organization and candidates of a political party; as, a straight Republican; a straight Democrat; also, containing the names of all the regularly nominated candidates of a party and no others; as, a straight ballot. [Political Cant, U.S.] [1913 Webster]
{Straight arch} (Arch.), a form of arch in which the intrados is straight, but with its joints drawn radially, as in a common arch.
{A straight face}, one giving no evidence of merriment or other emotion.
{A straight line}. ``That which lies evenly between its extreme points.'' --Euclid. ``The shortest line between two points.'' --Chauvenet. ``A line which has the same direction through its whole length.'' --Newcomb.
{Straight-way valve}, a valve which, when opened widely, affords a straight passageway, as for water. [1913 Webster]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.