Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

Date: 1500-1600
Language: Latin
Origin: exactus, past participle of exigere; EXACT2

exact

1 adjective
     
ex‧act1 S3
1 completely correct in every detail:
Police are still investigating the exact cause of the accident.
What were his exact words?
The timing had to be exact.
exact location/position/spot etc
The exact location of the hostages is unknown.
exact date/time/number/amount etc
I know her birthday's in July, but I can't remember the exact date.
exact copy/replica etc
It's not an exact copy, but most people wouldn't notice the difference.
Some concepts in Chinese medicine have no exact equivalent in Western medicine.
2

to be exact

formal used to emphasize that what you are saying is exact:
She has worked at the bank for many years, nine to be exact.
3

the exact colour/moment/type etc

used to emphasize that the same thing is involved:
the exact colour I was looking for
He came into the room at the exact moment I mentioned his name.
That's the exact same thing my dad said.
4

the exact opposite (of somebody/something)

someone or something that is as different as possible from another person or thing:
Gina's the exact opposite of her little sister.
5

something is not an exact science

if you say that an activity is not an exact science, you mean that it involves opinions, guessing etc:
Predicting the weather is not an exact science.
6 someone who is exact is very careful and thorough in what they do [= precise]
—exactness noun [uncountable]
Definition from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Advanced Learner's Dictionary.
 
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