contact

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   close interaction

   They kept in daily contact.

2. 2
   noun

   the act of touching physically

   Their fingers came in contact with the light switch.

3. 3
   noun

   a junction where things, as two electrical conductors, touch or are in physical contact

   They forget to solder the contacts.

4. 4
   noun

   a thin curved glass or plastic lens designed to fit over the cornea in order to correct vision or to deliver medication

   I need to buy new contacts.

5. 5
   noun

   a channel for communication between groups

   We should establish a contact.

6. 6
   noun

   a communicative interaction

   The pilot made contact with the base.

7. 7
   noun

   the physical coming together of two or more things

   Contact with the pier scraped paint from the hull.

8. 8
   noun

   a person who is in a position to give you special assistance

   They used their business contacts to get an introduction to the governor.

Etymology

From Latin contactus, from contingō (“to touch on all sides”), from tangō (“to touch”). Used in English since the 17th century.