sphere

sphere  (sfr)

n.

1. Mathematics A three-dimensional surface, all points of which are equidistant from a fixed point.

2. A spherical object or figure.

3. A celestial body, such as a planet or star.

4. The sky, appearing as a hemisphere to an observer: the sphere of the heavens.

5. Any of a series of concentric, transparent, revolving globes that together were once thought to contain the moon, sun, planets, and stars.

6. The extent of a person's knowledge, interests, or social position.

7. An area of power, control, or influence; domain. See Synonyms at field.

tr.v. sphered, spher·ing, spheres

1. To form into a sphere.

2. To put in or within a sphere.

3. To surround or encompass.

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[Middle English spere, from Old French espere, from Latin sphaera, from Greek sphaira.]

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sphe·rici·ty (sfî-rs-t) n.

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sphere

Noun

1. Geom a round solid figure in which every point on the surface is equally distant from the centre

2. an object having this shape, such as a planet

3. a particular field of activity

4. people of the same rank or with shared interests: a humbler social sphere [Greek sphaira]

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sphere  (sfîr)

A three-dimensional geometric surface having all of its points the same distance from a given point.

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Sphere the persons with whom one is normally in contact, 1839; a group of persons of a certain rank, standing, or interest, 1601.

Examples: sphere of sweet affections, 1602; of fortunes, 1671; of the theatre; of the world of music.

Thesaurus

Noun	1.	sphere - a particular environment or walk of life; "his social sphere is limited"; "it was a closed area of employment"; "he's out of my orbit" arena, domain, orbit, area, field environment - the totality of surrounding conditions; "he longed for the comfortable environment of his living room" distaff - the sphere of work by women front - a sphere of activity involving effort; "the Japanese were active last week on the diplomatic front"; "they advertise on many different fronts" kingdom, realm, land - a domain in which something is dominant; "the untroubled kingdom of reason"; "a land of make-believe"; "the rise of the realm of cotton in the south" lap - an area of control or responsibility; "the job fell right in my lap" political arena, political sphere - a sphere of intense political activity preserve - a domain that seems to be specially reserved for someone; "medicine is no longer a male preserve" province, responsibility - the proper sphere or extent of your activities; "it was his province to take care of himself"
	2.	sphere - any spherically shaped artifact artefact, artifact - a man-made object taken as a whole globe - a sphere on which a map (especially of the earth) is represented
	3.	sphere - the geographical area in which one nation is very influential sphere of influence geographic area, geographic region, geographical area, geographical region - a demarcated area of the Earth
	4.	sphere - a particular aspect of life or activity; "he was helpless in an important sector of his life" sector aspect, facet - a distinct feature or element in a problem; "he studied every facet of the question" department - a specialized sphere of knowledge; "baking is not my department"; "his work established a new department of literature"
	5.	sphere - a solid figure bounded by a spherical surface (including the space it encloses) round shape - a shape that is curved and without sharp angles conglobation, conglomeration - a rounded spherical form globe, orb, ball - an object with a spherical shape; "a ball of fire" drop, bead, pearl - a shape that is spherical and small; "he studied the shapes of low-viscosity drops"; "beads of sweat on his forehead"
	6.	sphere - a three-dimensional closed surface such that every point on the surface is equidistant from the center steradian, sr - the unit of solid angle adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites round shape - a shape that is curved and without sharp angles
	7.	sphere - the apparent surface of the imaginary sphere on which celestial bodies appear to be projected celestial sphere, empyrean, firmament, heavens, vault of heaven, welkin apex of the sun's way, solar apex, apex - the point on the celestial sphere toward which the sun and solar system appear to be moving relative to the fixed stars celestial point - a point in the heavens (on the celestial sphere) nadir - the point below the observer that is directly opposite the zenith on the imaginary sphere against which celestial bodies appear to be projected surface - the extended two-dimensional outer boundary of a three-dimensional object; "they skimmed over the surface of the water"; "a brush small enough to clean every dental surface"; "the sun has no distinct surface" zenith - the point above the observer that is directly opposite the nadir on the imaginary sphere against which celestial bodies appear to be projected zodiac - a belt-shaped region in the heavens on either side to the ecliptic; divided into 12 constellations or signs for astrological purposes

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sphere

noun 1. ball, globe, orb, globule, circle

noun 2. field, range, area, department, function, territory, capacity, province, patch, scope, turf U.S. (slang) realm, domain, compass, walk of life

noun 3. rank, class, station, status, stratum

Translations

sphere [sfɪəʳ] n → esfera

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sphere [sfɪəʳ] n → sphère f (fig); sphère, domaine m

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sphere [sfɪəʳ] n → Kugel f;

(area) → Gebiet nt, Bereich m

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sphere [sfɪəʳ] n → sfera