direct

1 /di'rekt,"daI'rekt/ adjective

1 WITHOUT ANYTHING BETWEEN done without any other people, actions, processes etc coming between: Can we have direct access to the information on file? | She has direct control over the business. | I'm not in direct contact with them.

2 FROM ONE PLACE TO ANOTHER going straight from one place to another without stopping or changing direction: Which is the most direct route to London? | We can get a direct flight to New York.

3 EFFECT likely to change something immediately: The change in the law will have a direct bearing on the way benefits are calculated.

4 EXACT (only before noun) exact or total: Weight increases in direct proportion to mass. | These ideas are in direct contrast with the themes of her earlier essays. | direct quote (=what someone said in their exact words)

5 BEHAVIOUR/ATTITUDE saying exactly what you mean in an honest clear way: If only she'd been less direct in her approach, he might have helped.

6 direct descendant someone who is related to someone else through their parents and grandparents, not through their aunts, uncles, brothers, sisters etc: She claimed to be a direct descendant of Wordsworth.

7 direct result/consequence something that happens only because of one particular thing: They were suffering from stress, and their physical symptoms were a direct result.

8 direct question/answer a question that asks for information exactly and specifically, with no possibility of misunderstanding, or an answer that gives information in this way: Now, let me ask you a direct question, and I expect a direct answer.

9 direct heat/sunlight strong heat or sunlight that someone or something is not protected from: Never change the film in direct sunlight.

—opposite indirect 2 verb (T)

1 AIM (always + adv/prep) to aim something in a particular direction or at a particular person, group etc

(+ at/towards/away from etc): The machine directs an X-ray beam at the patient's body. | For once her sarcasm was not directed at us. | Environmental policy was traditionally directed at pollution control. | direct your efforts towards sth (=try hard to do one particular thing): I want to direct my efforts more towards my own projects. | direct your attention towards sth: None of them had ever directed serious attention to the problem.

2 BE IN CHARGE to be in charge of something or control it: Stella had been asked to direct a research project.

3 to tell someone how to get to a place: A policeman stood in the middle of the road, directing the traffic.

(+ to): Could you direct me to Trafalgar Square, please? —see lead 1

4 formal to tell someone what they should do: We were directed to hand over our passports. | direct that: Judge Rice directed that a verdict of `not guilty' be entered.

5 ACTING to give the actors in a play, film, or television programme instructions about what they should do: Who directed that movie we saw last week?

3 adverb

1 without stopping or changing direction: Can we fly direct to Chicago, or do we stop in Salt Lake City first?

2 without dealing with anyone else first: Esther decided to contact the manager direct. | It is usually cheaper to buy the goods direct from the wholesaler.