# point
## English
### Alternative forms

* p'int

### Pronunciation

* (UK, General American) enPR: point, IPA: /pɔɪnt/
* Audio (US):(file)
* Audio (General Australian):(file)
* Rhymes: -ɔɪnt

### Etymology 1

From Middle English poynt, from Old French point m (“dot; minute amount”), from Latin pūnctum (“a hole punched in; a point, puncture”), substantive use of pūnctus m, perfect passive participle of pungō (“I prick, punch”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *pewǵ- (“prick, punch”)); alternatively, from Old French pointe f (“sharp tip”), from Latin pūncta f (past participle). Displaced native Middle English ord (“point”), from Old English ord (“point”). Doublet of pointe, ponto, puncto, punctum, punt, and punto.

#### Noun

point (countable and uncountable, plural points)
* A small dot or mark.
** Something tiny, as a pinprick; a very small mark. [from 15th c.]
    The stars showed as tiny points of yellow light.
** A full stop or other terminal punctuation mark. [from 14th c.]
*** 1735, Alexander Pope, The Prologue to the Satires:Commas and points they set exactly right.
** (mathematics) A decimal point (now especially when reading decimal fractions aloud). [from 18th c.]
    10.5 is "ten point five", or ten and a half.
** Each of the marks or strokes written above letters, especially in Semitic languages, to indicate vowels, stress etc. [from 17th c.]
** (music) A dot or mark used to designate certain tones or time. In ancient music, it distinguished or characterized certain tones or styles (points of perfection, of augmentation, etc.). In modern music, it is placed on the right of a note to raise its value, or prolong its time, by one half.
** (by extension) A note; a tune.
*** 1826, [Walter Scott], Woodstock; Or, The Cavalier. […], volume (please specify |volume=I to III), Edinburgh: […] [James Ballantyne and Co.] for Archibald Constable and Co.; London: Longman, Rees, Orme, Brown, and Green, →OCLC:Sound the trumpet — not a levant, or a flourish, but a point of war.
** (mathematics, sciences) A zero-dimensional mathematical object representing a location in one or more dimensions; something considered to have position but no magnitude or direction. [from 14th c.]
* A small discrete division or individual feature of something.
** An individual element in a larger whole; a particular detail, thought, or quality. [from 13th c.]
    The Congress debated the finer points of the bill.
** A particular moment in an event or occurrence; a juncture. [from 13th c.]
    There comes a point in a marathon when some people give up.
    At this point in the meeting, I'd like to propose a new item for the agenda.
** (archaic) Condition, state. [from 13th c.]
    She was not feeling in good point.
** A topic of discussion or debate; a proposition; a count [from 14th c.]
    I made the point that we all had an interest to protect.
** (US, slang, dated) An item of private information; a hint; a tip; a pointer.
** A focus of conversation or consideration; the main idea.
    The point is that we should stay together, whatever happens.
** A purpose or objective, which makes something meaningful. [from 14th c.]
    Since the decision has already been made, I see little point in further discussion.
*** 1983 October 31, Genesis, “That's All”, in Genesis‎:But I love you / More than I wanted to / There's no point in trying to pretend
*** 2023, “What's the Point in Life”, in Killjoy, performed by Coach Party:We're all gonna die What's the point in life What's the point in life if we all die?
** (obsolete) The smallest quantity of something; a jot, a whit. [14th–17th c.]
*** 1590, Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene, I.ii:full large of limbe and euery ioint / He was, and cared not for God or man a point.
** (obsolete) A tiny amount of time; a moment. [14th–17th c.]
*** 1599, John Davies, “Of the Soule of Man and the Immortalitie Thereof”, in Nosce Teipsum:When time's first point begun / Made he all souls.
** A specific location or place, seen as a spatial position. [from 14th c.]
    We should meet at a pre-arranged point.
** A distinguishing quality or characteristic. [from 15th c.]
    Logic isn't my strong point.
** (in the plural, dated) The chief or excellent features.
    the points of a horse
*** 1931, Arnold Bennett, The Night Visitor and Other Stories, page 290:Knowledge was always useful, and he had frequently heard the words 'Great Portland Street' on the lips of his son, who regularly perused all the twelve automobilistic papers, and who was apparently the most learned pundit and inclusive encyclopædia ever created on the subject of petrol-driven vehicles, their prices, and their innumerable points.
** (usually in the plural) An area of contrasting colour on an animal, especially a dog; a marking. [from 19th c.]
    The point color of that cat was a deep, rich sable.
** (now only in phrases) A tenth; formerly also a twelfth. [from 17th c.]
    Possession is nine points of the law.
** Short for percentage point.
*** 2013, Louise Levison, Filmmakers and Financing: Business Plans for Independents, page 67:We have yet to touch on the idea of stars and directors receiving gross points, which is a percentage of the studio's gross dollar (e.g., the $5.00 studio share of the total box office dollar in Table 4.1). Even if the points are paid on "first dollar," the reference is only to studio share.
** (sports, video games, board games) A unit of scoring in a game or competition. [from 18th c.]
    The one with the most points will win the game.
** (video games, board games) A unit of various numerical parameters used in a game, e.g. health, experience, stamina, mana.
    This attack deals 320 points of damage.
    Defeating the boss grants 60 experience points.
** (economics) A unit used to express differences in prices of stocks and shares. [from 19th c.]
** (typography) a unit of measure equal to 1/12 of a pica, or approximately 1/72 of an inch (exactly 1/72 of an inch in the digital era). [from 19th c.]
** (UK) An electric power socket. [from 20th c.]
** (navigation, nautical) A unit of bearing equal to one thirty-second of a circle, i.e. 11.25°.
    Ship ahoy, three points off the starboard bow!
** (UK) A unit of measure for rain, equal to 0.254 mm or 0.01 of an inch.
** (automotive, chiefly in the plural) Either of the two metal surfaces in a distributor which close or open to allow or prevent the flow of current through the ignition coil. There is usually a moving point, pushed by the distributor cam, and a fixed point, and they are built together as a unit.
* A sharp extremity.
** The sharp tip of an object. [from 14th c.]
    Cut the skin with the point of the knife.
*** c. 1587–1588, [Christopher Marlowe], Tamburlaine the Great. […] The First Part […], 2nd edition, part 1, London: […] [R. Robinson for] Richard Iones, […], published 1592, →OCLC; reprinted as Tamburlaine the Great (A Scolar Press Facsimile), Menston, Yorkshire, London: Scolar Press, 1973, →ISBN, Act III, scene iii:Leaue words & let them feele your lances pointes
** Any projecting extremity of an object. [from 14th c.]
** An object which has a sharp or tapering tip. [from 14th c.]
    His cowboy belt was studded with points.
*** (archaeology) A spearhead or similar object hafted to a handle.
**** 2018, Tim Flannery, Europe: A Natural History:Solutrean points resemble the canines of the sabre-toothed cats.
*** (medicine, obsolete) A vaccine point.
** (backgammon) Each of the twelve triangular positions in either table of a backgammon board, on which the stones are played. [from 15th c.]
** A peninsula or promontory. [from 15th c.]
** The position at the front or vanguard of an advancing force. [from 16th c.]
*** 2004, Martin Torgoff, “Next Stop is Vietnam”, in Can’t Find My Way Home: America in the Great Stoned Age, 1945–2000, New York, N.Y.: Simon & Schuster, →ISBN, page 189:Willie Jones decided to become Kimani Jones, Black Panther, on the day his best friend, Otis Nicholson, stepped on a mine while walking point during a sweep in the central highlands.
*** (by extension) An operational or public leadership position in a risky endeavor.
**** 2013, Erik Schubach, Music of the Soul, volume 1:"When do we pull the trigger?" he asked. I was quick to respond, "If Tammy get's Mrs. Wellington to agree, she'll call you in a couple hours. Then just pull out all stops. Tammy has point on this, I don't want to hear from you unless it's an all clear."
**** 2018 July 2, Paul Winfree, “Trump’s economic agenda is unfocused. Here’s how to fix it.”, in Washington Post:The president’s senior policy adviser, Stephen Miller, has been point on immigration policy.
**** 2020 July 23, Gabe Lacques, “Dr. Anthony Fauci throws first pitch at Nationals-Yankees MLB opener”, in USA TODAY:He captained Regis High School’s 1958 squad, but now runs point on infectious diseases.
**** 2020 August 11, Michelle Karas, “Woodland Park School District plans for Aug. 25 reopening with multiple learning options”, in Pikes Peak Courier:Instead of one point-person taking all the parents’ questions, WPSD has “put together coaches and ambassadors to handle calls so one person doesn’t have to handle 2,500 calls,” Woolf said.
*** Short for point man.
** Each of the main directions on a compass, usually considered to be 32 in number; a direction. [from 16th c.]
** (nautical) The difference between two points of the compass.
    to fall off a point
** Pointedness of speech or writing; a penetrating or decisive quality of expression. [from 17th c.]
*** 1897, Henry James, What Maisie Knew:There was moreover a hint of the duchess in the infinite point with which, as she felt, she exclaimed: "And this is what you call coming often?"
*** 1913, Joseph C[rosby] Lincoln, chapter IV, in Mr. Pratt’s Patients, New York, N.Y., London: D[aniel] Appleton and Company, →OCLC:I told him about everything I could think of; and what I couldn't think of he did. He asked about six questions during my yarn, but every question had a point to it. At the end he bowed and thanked me once more. As a thanker he was main-truck high; I never see anybody so polite.
** (rail transport, UK, in the plural) A railroad switch. [from 19th c.]
** A tine or snag of an antler.
** (heraldry) One of the "corners" of the escutcheon: the base (bottom center) unless a qualifier is added (point dexter, point dexter base, point sinister, point sinister base), generally when separately tinctured. (Compare terrace, point champaine, enté en point.) This is sometimes blazoned argent, four points gules; otherwise, it is vêtu.
** (heraldry, by extension) An ordinary similar to a pile (but sometimes shorter), extending upward from the base. (Often termed a point pointed.)
*** 1828, William Berry, Encyclopaedia Heraldica Or Complete Dictionary of Heraldry:The point, according to Edmondson, (meaning the point pointed,) is an ordinary somewhat resembling the pile, issuing from the base, as in Plate VII. fig. 24, and is sometimes termed a base point pointed, but the word base is superfluous, as that is the proper place of the point; […]
* The act of pointing.
** The act of pointing, as of the foot downward in certain dance positions.
** The gesture of extending the index finger in a direction in order to indicate something.
*** 2005, Marc Marschark, Patricia Elizabeth Spencer, Oxford handbook of deaf studies, language, and education:[…] DCDP children are exposed to more points and gesturelike signs in their linguistic environment […]
** The attitude assumed by a pointer dog when he finds game.
    The dog came to a point.
** (falconry) The perpendicular rising of a hawk over the place where its prey has gone into cover.
** (fencing) A movement executed with the sabre or foil.
    tierce point
* (nautical) A short piece of cordage used in reefing sails.
* (historical) A string or lace used to tie together certain garments.
** 1822 May 29, [Walter Scott], The Fortunes of Nigel. […], volume (please specify |volume=I to III), Edinburgh: […] [James Ballantyne and Co.] for Archibald Constable and Co.; London: Hurst, Robinson, and Co., →OCLC:pick your purse while they tie your points, and cut your throat while they smooth your pillow
* Lace worked by the needle.
    point de Venise; Brussels point
** c. 1621–1623 (date written), Philip Massinger, The Maid of Honour. […], London: […] I[ohn] B[eale] for Robert Allot, […], published 1632, →OCLC, Act V, scene i, signature [K4], recto:And I to make all knovv, I am not ſhallovv, / VVill have my points of Cucchineale and yellovv.
** 1834, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], chapter XXV, in Francesca Carrara. […], volume I, London: Richard Bentley, […], (successor to Henry Colburn), →OCLC, page 297:He wore a garb rather fanciful, of a silver-grey colour, trimmed with crimson, and a narrow edging of silver; the lace round his throat was of the finest point; […]
* In various sports, a position of a certain player, or, by extension, the player occupying that position.
** (cricket, countable, uncountable) A fielding position square of the wicket on the off side, between gully and cover. [from 19th c.]
** (lacrosse, ice hockey, countable, uncountable) The position of the player of each side who stands a short distance in front of the goalkeeper.
** (baseball, countable, uncountable) The position of the pitcher and catcher.
** (hunting) A spot to which a straight run is made; hence, a straight run from point to point; a cross-country run.

##### Synonyms

* (location or place): location, place, position, spot
* (in geometry): ord
* (particular moment in an event or occurrence): moment, ord, time
* (sharp tip): end, ord, tip
* (arithmetic symbol): spot, decimal point (name of the symbol; not used when reading decimal fractions aloud)
* (opinion): opinion, point of view, view, viewpoint
* (unit of measure of success or failure): mark (in a competition)
* (color of extremities of an animal):

##### Hyponyms

* access point
* accidental point
* accumulation point
* action point
* amphidromic point
* anchor point
* Archimedean point
* assemblage point
* axial point
* ballpoint
* Banks-Zaks fixed point
* basepoint
* basis point
* bird point
* bite point
* biting point
* bliss point
* blue point
* boiling point
* boundary point
* branch point
* breakdown point
* break-even point
* breaking point
* break point
* Brocard point
* brownie point
* bullet point
* cardinal point
* case in point
* cash point
* cashpoint
* charging point
* chocolate point
* clip point
* cloud point
* Clovis point
* code point
* coincidence point
* commit point
* compass point
* compound point
* condensation point
* consolute point
* construction point
* control point
* cover point
* critical point
* Curie point
* data point
* datum point
* decimal point
* deep point
* demerit point
* dew point
* Didot point
* Disney point
* dot point
* double point
* downflooding point
* Draper point
* dropping point
* dry point
* drypoint
* Eckardt point
* endpoint
* end point
* entry point
* entry point for the eye
* eutectic point
* exclamation point
* Exeter point
* experience point
* extra point
* extreme point
* fare break point
* fess point
* Feynman point
* fire point
* firing point
* first point of Aries
* first point of Cancer
* first point of Capricorn
* first point of Libra
* fixed point
* flash point
* floating point
* flotating point
* focal point
* Fournier point
* fourth point of contact
* freezing point
* frontal point
* full point
* game point
* glazier's point
* gold point
* grade point
* Grebe point
* grid point
* ground control point
* grown-up point
* gunpoint
* health point
* Heegner point
* higher intermediate point
* high point, highpoint
* hit point
* hollow point
* honor point
* honour point
* hypercritical point
* ice point
* ideal point
* inflection point
* infopoint
* initial point
* interior point
* interjection point
* interrogation point
* isoelectric point
* isolated point
* isosbestic point
* join point
* jumping-off point
* jump-off point
* junction point
* kindling point
* knickpoint
* knifepoint
* K-point
* lacrimal point
* Lagrange point
* Lagrangian point
* lambda point
* lattice point
* Lemoine point
* libration point
* ligature point
* lilac point
* limit point
* magic point
* mana point
* match point
* McBurney's point
* melting point
* midpoint, mid-point
* minor point
* moot point
* mount point
* navel point
* near point
* needlepoint
* nick point
* nip point
* nombril point
* occipital point
* omega point
* Omega point
* operating point
* ordinary point
* organ point
* Orient Point
* outpoint
* pain point
* passion point
* pedal point
* penalty point
* percentage point
* Pica point
* pinch point
* pivot point
* plant point
* pogi point
* Point Arguello
* Point Edward
* point of care
* point of difference
* point of sight
* point of vision
* power point
* pressure point
* projectile point
* radix point
* Radon point
* raised point
* reference point
* Regatta Point
* rogue access point
* saddle point
* sample pointt
* saturation point
* save point
* scatter point
* Schelling point
* seal point
* sequence point
* set point
* SharePoint
* silly point
* singular point
* skill point
* smoke point
* sore point
* spawn point
* speaker point
* specie point
* stagnation point
* standpoint
* starting point
* stationary point
* sticking point
* stress point
* subsolar point
* take point
* talking point
* till point
* tipping point
* transition point
* trig point
* triple point
* trisection point
* trois point
* Trojan point
* Truchet point
* turning point
* vanishing point
* vantage point
* vernal point
* victory point
* vowel point
* waypoint
* yield point
* zero point

##### Derived terms

* ace point
* all-points
* all-points bulletin
* all points of the compass
* articulation point
* assembly point
* at all points
* at some point
* at swords' points
* at the point of
* at this point
* at this point in time
* aura points
* bar point
* besides the point
* beside the point
* Bevan point
* binary point
* Brussels point
* bursting point
* carry one's point
* choke point, chokepoint
* Clawson point
* closest point of approach
* colon-point
* comma-point
* critical point drying
* cut point
* de Longchamps point
* Dirac point
* equal detour point
* every point of the compass
* example in point
* experience points
* fair point
* Fermat point
* Fermat-Torricelli point
* Feuerbach point
* five-point Calvinist
* Five Points
* fixed-point
* floating-point
* floating point processor
* four-point
* frost point
* full-point
* Gergonne point
* get the point
* get to the point
* have a point
* have got a point
* Hickory Point
* hit points
* house points
* in point
* in point of
* in point of fact
* interrogative-point
* jump point search
* Kleene fixed-point theorem
* Kleene's fixed-point theorem
* labor the point
* labour the point
* langit point
* ligtas point
* low point
* make a point
* missed approach point
* miss someone's point
* miss the point
* monkey points
* more to the point
* my point exactly
* Nagel point
* Napoleon point
* nine-point circle
* nine points circle
* not to put too fine a point on it
* nul points
* one-point
* one-point perspective
* on point
* on the point of
* organ-point
* parenthesis-point
* participation points
* peril point
* plain point
* plot point
* pointable
* point bar
* Point Barrow
* point blank
* point blanket
* point break
* point by point
* point cloud
* point defence
* point-device
* point-devise
* point duty
* pointed
* point elasticity
* point form
* point-free
* point function
* point group
* point guard
* point heater
* point-in-line
* point-instant
* point in time
* point lace
* pointless
* point man
* point mass
* Point Mugu
* point mutation
* point net
* point of articulation
* point-of-care imaging
* point of contact
* point of contention
* point of departure
* point of divergence
* point of fact
* point of honor
* point of honour
* point of inevitability
* point of inflection
* point of inflexion
* point of inquiry
* point of interest
* point of no return
* point of order
* point of origin
* point of pride
* point of privilege
* point of purchase
* point of reference
* point of sail
* point of sale
* point of service
* point of tangency
* point of the compass
* point of use
* point of view
* point paper
* point penalty
* point person
* point presser
* point-projection perspective
* point release
* points classification
* point set
* point-set topology
* point shave
* point-shave
* point shaving
* point-shaving
* points in the paint
* point source
* points race
* point taken
* point target
* point-to-point
* point-to-pointer
* point-to-pointing
* pointwise
* pointy
* possession is nine points of the law
* potatoes and point
* price point
* punctilious
* punctual
* punctuate
* punctuation
* quarter point
* rallying point
* red point
* reef point
* reparse point
* reporting point
* run point
* salient point
* Schiffler point
* school-point
* score points
* see the point
* selling point
* single point of failure
* single-point urban interchange
* soft point
* stand upon points
* Steiner point
* strain a point
* stretch a point
* stretch the point
* strong point
* suction point
* suspension points
* Sylvian point
* take one's point
* take point of
* take someone's point
* take the point
* target rating point
* Tarski's fixed-point theorem
* tax point
* ten points to Gryffindor
* there's no point crying over spilt milk
* three-point landing
* three-point line
* three-point perspective
* three-point shot
* three-point turn
* ticket point mileage
* time-point
* time-point set
* tipping-point state
* toast point
* Torricelli point
* to the point
* trigger point
* two-point
* two-point conversion
* two-point perspective
* two points
* upon the point of
* up to a point
* wax point
* weak point
* weather a point
* Weierstrass point
* what's the point
* what’s the point?
* white-point
* Wyandot Point
* zero-point
* zero-point energy
* Brooke's Point
* Carmel Point
* Castle Point
* Crown Point
* Elk Point
* Hickory Point
* High Point
* Hinkley Point
* Kittery Point
* Pine Point
* Point Edward
* Point Loma
* Point of Ayr
* Point Pleasant
* Point Roberts
* Promontory Point
* Regatta Point
* Rouses Point
* Sea Point
* Stevens Point
* Wolf Point

##### Related terms

* point d'appui

##### Descendants

* → Cantonese: point
* → Indonesian: poin
* → Japanese: ポイント (pointo)
* → Korean: 포인트 (pointeu)
* → Malay: poin

##### Translations

    The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

##### See also

* Appendix:Collocations of do, have, make, and take for the use of point with these verbs

##### References

* point on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

### Etymology 2

From Middle English pointen, poynten, from Old French pointier, pointer, poynter, from point from Latin pūnctum.

#### Verb

point (third-person singular simple present points, present participle pointing, simple past and past participle pointed)
* (intransitive) To extend the index finger in the direction of something in order to show where it is or to draw attention to it.
    It's rude to point at other people.
** c. 1590–1592 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Taming of the Shrew”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene ii]:Now must the world point at poor Katharine.
** 1693, Decimus Junius Juvenalis, John Dryden, transl., “[The Satires of Decimus Junius Juvenalis.] (please specify the satire number)”, in The Satires of Decimus Junius Juvenalis. Translated into English Verse. […] Together with the Satires of Aulus Persius Flaccus. […], London: […] Jacob Tonson […], →OCLC:Point at the tattered coat and ragged shoe.
** 2011 October 23, Becky Ashton, “QPR 1 - 0 Chelsea”, in BBC Sport:Luiz struggled with the movement of Helguson in the box, as he collected a long ball and the Spaniard barged him over, leaving referee Chris Foy little option but to point to the spot.
* (intransitive) To draw attention to something or indicate a direction.
    The arrow of a compass points north
    The skis were pointing uphill.
    The arrow on the map points towards the entrance
** 2013 June 7, Ed Pilkington, “‘Killer robots’ should be banned in advance, UN told”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 188, number 26, page 6:In his submission to the UN, [Christof] Heyns points to the experience of drones. Unmanned aerial vehicles were intended initially only for surveillance, and their use for offensive purposes was prohibited, yet once strategists realised their perceived advantages as a means of carrying out targeted killings, all objections were swept out of the way.
* (intransitive) To face in a particular direction.
* (transitive, sometimes figurative) To direct toward an object; to aim.
    to point a gun at a wolf, or a cannon at a fort
** 1853, Great Britain. Parliament. House of Commons, Parliamentary Papers, volume 11, page 267:Mr. Fitzsimons pointed my attention to an outside car on which was written, "Take warning," or something of that kind, and he pointed that out to me, and drew my attention to it, as a thing likely to intimidate […]
* To give a point to; to sharpen; to cut, forge, grind, or file to an acute end.
    to point a dart, a pencil, or (figuratively) a moral
* (intransitive) To indicate a probability of something.
** 2011 December 21, Helen Pidd, “Europeans migrate south as continent drifts deeper into crisis”, in the Guardian:Tens of thousands of Portuguese, Greek and Irish people have left their homelands this year, many heading for the southern hemisphere. Anecdotal evidence points to the same happening in Spain and Italy.
* (ambitransitive, masonry) To repair mortar.
* (transitive, masonry) To fill up and finish the joints of (a wall), by introducing additional cement or mortar, and bringing it to a smooth surface.
* (stone-cutting) To cut, as a surface, with a pointed tool.
** 2020 May 20, Philip Haigh, “Ribblehead: at the heart of the S&C's survival and its revival: Ribblehead Viaduct repairs”, in Rail, page 27:Damaged stone will be removed, and the new stone installed and pointed to ensure a comprehensive match to maintain the integrity of the structure.
* (transitive) To direct or encourage (someone) in a particular direction.
    If he asks for food, point him toward the refrigerator.
** 1715–1720, Homer, translated by Alexander Pope, “(please specify the book of the Iliad or chapter quoted from)”, in The Iliad of Homer, volume (please specify |volume=I to VI), London: […] W[illiam] Bowyer, for Bernard Lintott […], →OCLC:Whosoever should be guided through his battles by Minerva, and pointed to every scene of them.
* (transitive, mathematics) To separate an integer from a decimal with a decimal point.
* (transitive) To mark with diacritics.
* (dated) To supply with punctuation marks; to punctuate.
    to point a composition
* (transitive, computing) To direct the central processing unit to seek information at a certain location in memory.
* (transitive, Internet) To direct requests sent to a domain name to the IP address corresponding to that domain name.
* (intransitive, nautical) To sail close to the wind.
    Bear off a little, we're pointing.
* (intransitive, hunting) To indicate the presence of game by a fixed and steady look, as certain hunting dogs do.
** 1713, [John] Gay, Rural Sports. A Poem. […], 2nd edition, London: […] J[acob] Tonson, […], →OCLC, page 16:Novv the vvarm Scent aſſures the Covey near, / He [the dog] treads vvith Caution, and he points vvith Fear; […]
* (medicine, of an abscess) To approximate to the surface; to head.
* (dated) To give point to (something said or done); to give particular prominence or force to.
** 1852 March – 1853 September, Charles Dickens, Bleak House, London: Bradbury and Evans, […], published 1853, →OCLC:He points it, however, by no deviation from his straightforward manner of speech.
** 1924, EM Forster, A Passage to India, Penguin, published 2005, page 85:‘Oh, it is the great defect in our Indian character!’ – and, as if to point his criticism, the lights of the Civil Station appeared on a rise to the right.

##### Derived terms

* point and call
* point-and-click
* point-and-shoot
* point-and-shooter
* point at
* point at infinity
* pointer
* point fingers
* point one's toes
* point out
* point Percy at the porcelain
* point the bone
* point the finger
* point the finger at
* point up
* repoint

##### Translations
### Etymology 3

From Middle English pointen, poynten, by apheresis of apointen, appointen, appoynten. See appoint.

#### Verb

point (third-person singular simple present points, present participle pointing, simple past and past participle pointed)
* (obsolete) To appoint.
** 1590, Edmund Spenser, “Book I, Canto IX”, in The Faerie Queene. […], London: […] [John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, →OCLC:And he, that points the Centinel his room, Doth license him depart at sound of morning Droom.

### References

* ↑ “pointen, v.(1).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2018, retrieved 20 January 2020.
* ↑ “pointen, v.(2).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2018, retrieved 20 January 2020.

### Further reading

* “point”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
* William Dwight Whitney, Benjamin E[li] Smith, editors (1911), “point”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., →OCLC.

### Anagrams

* Pinto, opt in, opt-in, pinot, pinto, piton, potin

## Chinese
### Etymology

From English point.

### Pronunciation

* Cantonese (Jyutping): pon$^1$
* Cantonese
** (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)
*** Jyutping: pon$^1$
*** Yale: pōn
*** Cantonese Pinyin: pon$^1$
*** Guangdong Romanization: pon$^1$
*** Sinological IPA : /pʰɔːn⁵⁵/

### Noun

point (Hong Kong Cantonese)
* point (of an argument); main idea; argument
       keoi$^5$ go$^3$ pon$^1$ dou$^1$ gei$^2$ jau$^5$ dou$^6$ lei$^5$ [Jyutping]
       His idea makes some sense
       keoi$^5$ gong$^2$ je$^5$ dou$^1$ mou$^5$ pon$^1$ ge$^2$! [Jyutping]
       What he is saying does not have any point!
* levels in the wage scale
    跳point [Cantonese] ― tiu$^3$ pon$^1$ [Jyutping] ― to increase in salary by moving up the wage scale

## Danish
### Etymology

From French point, from Latin pūnctum, the neuter of the participle pūnctus (“pointed”). Doublet of pointe, punkt, and punktum, and cognate with punktere (from Latin punctuo).

### Pronunciation

* IPA: [pʰoˈɛŋ]

### Noun

point
* a point (in a game)

#### See also

* punkt
* pointe
* pointere

### Further reading

* “point” in Den Danske Ordbog

## French
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /pwɛ̃/
* Audio:(file)
* Audio (Paris):(file)
* (Quebec) IPA: [pwɛ̃ɪ̃]
* Rhymes: -ɛ̃
* Homophones: poing, poings, points

### Etymology 1

Inherited from Middle French poinct (with orthography modified to reflect the Latin etymology), from Old French point, from Latin punctum.

#### Noun

point m (plural points)
* point (small mark)
* (sports, games) point
* full stop, period (punctuation mark)
* (knitting) stitch pattern
* dot (Morse code symbol)

##### Derived terms

* à bon vin point d’enseigne
* à méchant ouvrier, point de bon outil
* à point
* à point nommé
* à quel point
* à tel point que
* au plus haut point
* au point
* au point de
* deux points
* en tout point
* faire le point
* mal en point
* marquer un point
* mettre au point
* mettre les points sur les i
* mettre un point d’honneur
* mise au point
* point à la ligne
* point aveugle
* point barre
* point cardinal
* point chaud
* point commun
* point de chute
* point de côté
* point de départ
* point de fuite
* point de fusion
* point de Lagrange
* point de libration
* point de mire
* point de non retour
* point de non-retour
* point de rebroussement
* point de repère
* point de rosée
* point de suture
* point de vente
* point de vie
* point de vue
* point diplomatique
* point d’ancrage
* point d’Angleterre
* point d’articulation
* point d’eau
* point d’ébullition
* point d’entrée
* point d’exclamation
* point d’expérience
* point d’inflexion
* point d’interrogation
* point d’orgue
* point exclarrogatif
* point faible
* point final
* point fort
* point G
* point médian
* point mort
* point noir
* point triple
* point trop n’en faut
* point virgule
* pointer
* points de suspension
* sur le point de
* tout vient à point à qui sait attendre
* un point c’est tout
* un point fait à temps en épargne cent

##### Descendants

* → Danish: point
* → Dutch: punt
* → Norwegian Bokmål: poeng
* → Persian: پوئن (pu'an)
* → Polish: pointa
* → Swedish: poäng
* → Turkish: puan

#### Adverb

point
* (literary, dialectal, usually with "ne") not
    Synonym: pas (contemporary French)
    Ne craignez point ― Fear not

#### Related terms

* appointer
* pointe
* poindre
* poignant
* poinçon

### Etymology 2

Inherited from Old French point, from Latin punctus.

#### Participle

point (feminine pointe, masculine plural points, feminine plural pointes)
* past participle of poindre

### Etymology 3

From Latin pungit.

#### Verb

point
* third-person singular present indicative of poindre

### Further reading

* “point”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

### Anagrams

* piton

## Manx
### Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

### Verb

point (verbal noun pointeil, past participle pointit)
* appoint

### Mutation

Note: Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in standard Manx. All possible mutated forms are displayed for convenience.

## Norman
### Etymology

From Old French point, from Latin punctum.

### Noun

point m (plural points)
* (Jersey) full stop, period (punctuation mark)

#### Derived terms

* point d'excliamâtion (“exclamation mark”)
* point d'tchestchionn'nie (“question mark”)
* point virgule (“semicolon”)

## Old French
### Etymology 1

From Latin punctum.

#### Noun

point oblique singular, m (oblique plural poinz or pointz, nominative singular poinz or pointz, nominative plural point)
* a sting; a prick
* moment; time
* (on a die) dot
* small amount

#### Adverb

point
* a little
* (with ne) not (indicates negation)

#### Descendants

* Middle French: poinct
** French: point
* → Middle English: poynt
** English: point

### Etymology 2

From Latin punctus.

#### Verb

point
* past participle of poindre

##### Descendants

* Dutch: pointeren
* English: point
* Middle French: poinct
** French: point
*** Norwegian Bokmål: poeng

## Polish
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈpwɛnt/
* Rhymes: -ɛnt
* Syllabification: point

### Noun

point f pl
* genitive plural of pointa

## Portuguese
### Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from English point. Doublet of ponto.

### Pronunciation

* (Brazil) IPA: /ˈpõj̃.t͡ʃ(i)/

### Noun

point m (plural points)
* (Brazil, slang) a location where members of a group usually meet
    Synonym: spot (Portugal)