Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

Date: 1600-1700
Language: Late Latin
Origin: systema, from Greek, from synistanai 'to combine', from syn- ( SYN-) + histanai 'to cause to stand'

system

 noun
     
Related topics: Human, Computers
sys‧tem S1 W1
1

related parts

[countable] a group of related parts that work together as a whole for a particular purpose:
an alarm system
a well-designed heating system
the digestive system
the railway system
the banking system
political/legal/education system
a fundamental reform of the country's political system
system of
the British system of government
2

method

[countable] an organized set of ideas, methods, or ways of working
system of/for doing something
a system for dealing with complaints from customers
I don't understand your filing system.
under a system
Under the present system, we do not have any flexibility.
3TD

computers

[countable]TD a group of computers that are connected to each other:
The system has crashed. (=stopped working)
4

somebody's system

someone's body - used when you are talking about its medical or physical condition:
All this overeating is not good for my system.
5

all systems go

used, sometimes humorously, to say that you are ready to do something or that something is ready to happen
6

the system

the official rules and powerful organizations that restrict what you can do:
7

get something out of your system

informal to do something that helps you get rid of unpleasant strong feelings:
I was furious, so I went for a run to get it out of my system.
8

order

[uncountable] the use of sensible and organized methods:
We need a bit more system in the way we organize our files.
Definition from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Advanced Learner's Dictionary.

Dictionary pictures of the day
Do you know what each of these is called?
What is the word for picture 1? What is the word for picture 2? What is the word for picture 3? What is the word for picture 4?
Click on any of the pictures above to find out what it is called.

Explore our topic dictionary

Browse the dictionary