Library / English Dictionary

INTEREST

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

Irregular inflected form: interest   

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

A diversion that occupies one's time and thoughts (usually pleasantly)

Example:

they criticized the boy for his limited pursuits

Synonyms:

interest; pastime; pursuit

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Hypernyms ("interest" is a kind of...):

diversion; recreation (an activity that diverts or amuses or stimulates)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "interest"):

avocation; by-line; hobby; pursuit; sideline; spare-time activity (an auxiliary activity)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A reason for wanting something done

Example:

in the common interest

Synonyms:

interest; sake

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Hypernyms ("interest" is a kind of...):

benefit; welfare (something that aids or promotes well-being)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "interest"):

behalf (for someone's benefit (usually expressed as 'in behalf' rather than 'on behalf' and usually with a possessive))

Sense 3

Meaning:

The power of attracting or holding one's attention (because it is unusual or exciting etc.)

Example:

primary colors can add interest to a room

Synonyms:

interest; interestingness

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Hypernyms ("interest" is a kind of...):

power; powerfulness (possession of controlling influence)

Attribute:

uninteresting (arousing no interest or attention or curiosity or excitement)

interesting (arousing or holding the attention)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "interest"):

charisma; personal appeal; personal magnetism (a personal attractiveness or interestingness that enables you to influence others)

news; newsworthiness (the quality of being sufficiently interesting to be reported in news bulletins)

topicality (the attribute of being of interest at the present time)

color; colour; vividness (interest and variety and intensity)

shrillness (the quality of being sharp or harsh to the senses)

Derivation:

interest (excite the curiosity of; engage the interest of)

interest (be of importance or consequence)

Sense 4

Meaning:

A sense of concern with and curiosity about someone or something

Example:

an interest in music

Synonyms:

interest; involvement

Classified under:

Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents

Hypernyms ("interest" is a kind of...):

curiosity; wonder (a state in which you want to learn more about something)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "interest"):

enthusiasm (a lively interest)

concern (something that interests you because it is important or affects you)

Derivation:

interest (excite the curiosity of; engage the interest of)

interest (be on the mind of)

Sense 5

Meaning:

(usually plural) a social group whose members control some field of activity and who have common aims

Example:

the iron interests stepped up production

Synonyms:

interest; interest group

Classified under:

Nouns denoting groupings of people or objects

Hypernyms ("interest" is a kind of...):

social group (people sharing some social relation)

Domain usage:

plural; plural form (the form of a word that is used to denote more than one)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "interest"):

advocacy group; lobby; lobby group; pressure group; special-interest group; special interest; special interest group; third house (an interest group that tries to influence legislators or bureaucrats to act in their favor, typically through lobbying)

vested interest (groups that seek to control a social system or activity from which they derive private benefit)

Sense 6

Meaning:

(law) a right or legal share of something; a financial involvement with something

Example:

a stake in the company's future

Synonyms:

interest; stake

Classified under:

Nouns denoting possession and transfer of possession

Hypernyms ("interest" is a kind of...):

part; percentage; portion; share (assets belonging to or due to or contributed by an individual person or group)

Domain category:

jurisprudence; law (the collection of rules imposed by authority)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "interest"):

right ((frequently plural) the interest possessed by law or custom in some intangible thing)

reversion ((law) an interest in an estate that reverts to the grantor (or his heirs) at the end of some period (e.g., the death of the grantee))

equity (the ownership interest of shareholders in a corporation)

fee (an interest in land capable of being inherited)

undivided interest; undivided right (the interest in property owned by tenants whereby each tenant has an equal right to enjoy the entire property)

terminable interest (an interest in property that terminates under specific conditions)

security interest (any interest in a property that secures the payment of an obligation)

vested interest ((law) an interest in which there is a fixed right to present or future enjoyment and that can be conveyed to another)

insurable interest (an interest in a person or thing that will support the issuance of an insurance policy; an interest in the survival of the insured or in the preservation of the thing that is insured)

controlling interest (ownership of more than 50% of a corporation's voting shares)

grubstake (funds advanced to a prospector or to someone starting a business in return for a share of the profits)

Sense 7

Meaning:

A fixed charge for borrowing money; usually a percentage of the amount borrowed

Example:

how much interest do you pay on your mortgage?

Classified under:

Nouns denoting possession and transfer of possession

Hypernyms ("interest" is a kind of...):

fixed charge; fixed cost; fixed costs (a periodic charge that does not vary with business volume (as insurance or rent or mortgage payments etc.))

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "interest"):

compound interest (interest calculated on both the principal and the accrued interest)

simple interest (interest paid on the principal alone)

 II. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Excite the curiosity of; engage the interest of

Classified under:

Verbs of feeling

Hypernyms (to "interest" is one way to...):

arouse; elicit; enkindle; evoke; fire; kindle; provoke; raise (call forth (emotions, feelings, and responses))

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "interest"):

absorb; engage; engross; occupy (consume all of one's attention or time)

fascinate; grip; spellbind; transfix (to render motionless, as with a fixed stare or by arousing terror or awe)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s somebody
Something ----s somebody

Antonym:

bore (cause to be bored)

Derivation:

interest (the power of attracting or holding one's attention (because it is unusual or exciting etc.))

interest (a sense of concern with and curiosity about someone or something)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Be on the mind of

Example:

I worry about the second Germanic consonant shift

Synonyms:

concern; interest; occupy; worry

Classified under:

Verbs of being, having, spatial relations

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s somebody
Something ----s somebody

Sentence example:

The bad news will interest him

Derivation:

interest (a sense of concern with and curiosity about someone or something)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Be of importance or consequence

Example:

This matters to me!

Synonyms:

interest; matter to

Classified under:

Verbs of being, having, spatial relations

Hypernyms (to "interest" is one way to...):

bear on; come to; concern; have to do with; pertain; refer; relate; touch; touch on (be relevant to)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "interest"):

fascinate; intrigue (cause to be interested or curious)

Sentence frames:

Something ----s somebody
Something ----s something

Derivation:

interest (the power of attracting or holding one's attention (because it is unusual or exciting etc.))

Credits

 Context examples: 

All the drivers became interested in his case.

(The Call of the Wild, by Jack London)

In the meantime the newspapers were read at Sierra Vista, not so much with interest as with anxiety.

(White Fang, by Jack London)

I was so pleased at having given the slip to Long John that I began to enjoy myself and look around me with some interest on the strange land that I was in.

(Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson)

A scene has just passed of such uncommon interest that, although it is highly probable that these papers may never reach you, yet I cannot forbear recording it.

(Frankenstein, by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley)

“I thought you had a bond of common interest.”

(The Strange Case Of Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde, by Robert Louis Stevenson)

I may add that Miss Burnet’s age and character make it certain that my first idea that there might be a love interest in our story is out of the question.

(His Last Bow, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

A reference to someone other than the subject as being the one who has had an episode of the condition of interest, such as a disease.

(Other Experiencer, NCI Thesaurus)

Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI) Has the patient lost interest in friends and family members?

(NPI - Lost Interest in Friends and Family Members, NCI Thesaurus)

Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI) Has the patient lost interest in the world around him/her?

(NPI - Lost Interest in the World Around Him/Her, NCI Thesaurus)

Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI) Does the patient seem less interested in the activities and plans of others?

(NPI - Less Interested in the Activities and Plans of Others, NCI Thesaurus)