n.
Function: noun
Date: 14th century
1 a : an act of casting b : something that happens as a result of chance c : a throw of dice d : a throw of a line (as a fishing line) or net
2 a : the form in which a thing is constructed b (1) : the set of actors in a dramatic production (2) : a set of characters or persons <in both great houses there is the usual cast of servants ― Elizabeth Bowen> c : the arrangement of draperies in a painting
3 : the distance to which a thing can be thrown specifically : the distance a bow can shoot
4 a : a turning of the eye in a particular direction also : EXPRESSION <this freakish, elfish cast came into the child's eye ― Nathaniel Hawthorne> b : a slight strabismus
5 : something that is thrown or the quantity thrown especially British : the leader of a fishing line
6 a : something that is formed by casting in a mold or form: as (1) : a reproduction (as of a statue) in metal or plaster : CASTING (2) : a fossil reproduction of the details of a natural object by mineral infiltration b : an impression taken from an object with a liquid or plastic substance : MOLD c : a rigid casing (as of fiberglass or of gauze impregnated with plaster of paris) used for immobilizing a usually diseased or broken part
7 : FORECAST , CONJECTURE
8 a : an overspread of a color or modification of the appearance of a substance by a trace of some added hue : SHADE <gray with a greenish cast > b : TINGE , SUGGESTION
9 a : a ride on one's way in a vehicle : LIFT b Scottish : HELP , ASSISTANCE
10 a : SHAPE , APPEARANCE <the delicate cast of her features> b : characteristic quality <his father's conservative cast of mind>
11 : something that is shed, ejected, or thrown out or off: as a : the excrement of an earthworm b : a mass of soft matter formed in cavities of diseased organs and discharged from the body c : the skin of an insect
12 : the ranging in search of a trail by a dog, hunting pack, or tracker