I. ˈfēld, chiefly before pause or consonant -ēəld noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English feld, fild, field, from Old English feld; akin to Old Frisian, Old Saxon, & Old High German feld field, Old English fold earth, Old Saxon folda, Old Norse fold; akin to Old English flōr floor — more at floor
1.
a.
(1) : a land area free of woodland, cities, and towns : open country
(2) : the open country near or belonging to a city — usually used in plural
b.
(1) : an area of cleared enclosed land used for cultivation or pasture
a field of wheat
a field of cattle
(2) : an area of land containing, yielding, or worked for a natural resource
a coal field
oil fields
diamond fields
c. : the place where a battle is fought : battleground
d. : a large unbroken expanse of sea ice
2.
a. : an area, category, or division wherein a particular activity or pursuit is carried out
a lawyer eminent in his field
a wide field of speculation
the field of analytical chemistry
b.
(1) : the sphere of practical operation of an organization or enterprise ; specifically : the place or territory where direct contacts (as with customers) may be made or firsthand knowledge obtained
salesmen in the field
(2) : the scene of observation (as of actual phenomena) outside of a laboratory
geologists working in the field
c. : an area outside of a military post where exercises or maneuvers are carried out
new equipment being tested in the field
d.
(1) : an athletic or sports area or space (as an outdoor enclosure for baseball, cricket, football)
(2) : the portion enclosed by the racing track of an indoor or outdoor sports area on which are contested events of a track-and-field meet
3. : a space or ground on which something is drawn or projected: as
a. : the space on either surface of a coin, token, or medal that does not contain the central figure of the design, the inscription, or the exergue
b. : the ground of each division in a flag
c. heraldry
(1) : the whole surface of an escutcheon
(2) : so much of an escutcheon as is shown unconcealed by the different bearings upon it
d. : the area of a seal inside the inscription or other device about the circumference
4. : battle
an extremely costly field
5. : the persons, participants, or elements that make up all or part of a sports activity:
a. : all the participants with the exception usually of the favorite in an athletic contest or sporting event where more than two are entered ; especially : the horses or dogs that are for purposes of pari-mutuel betting grouped together usually as the 12th betting unit when the number of entries exceeds 12
b. : all the players that are in action especially in football
ran through a broken field
c. : the side of a team not at bat
d. : a fielder in cricket ; collectively : the members of the fielding side
e. : the group of numbers 2, 3, 5, 9, 10, 11, and 12 or 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 11, and 12 on which a bet in craps pays even money
6.
a. : a continuously distributed entity in space that accounts for actions at a distance
electric field
gravitational field
b. : field intensity
c. : a complex of coexistent forces (as biological, psychological, and social or interpersonal) which serve as causative agents or as a frame of reference in human experience and behavior
7.
a. mathematics : a domain or aggregate of elements or magnitudes that when combined by addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division, the divisor 0 being excluded, always produce an element of the aggregate
b. : a region of embryonic tissue potentially capable of a particular type of differentiation
a neural field
an ear field
c. : a region of space in which a given effect (as gravity, magnetism, or electricity) exists and has a definite value at each point
8.
a.
(1) : the usually circular area visible through the lens system of an optical instrument (as a microscope or telescope)
(2) : the whole area of a television image
b. : the site of a surgical operation
c. : the total range of meanings associated with a set of words which are related but not identical in meaning (as mind, thought, intellect, spirit, intelligence, insight ) — called also semantic field, word field
d. : card field
9.
a. : the field magnet of a generator — see dynamo illustration
b. : a series of open-joint drain tiles that leads off septic-tank overflow to its absorption area
Synonyms:
domain , province , sphere , territory , bailiwick : field denotes a limited and demarcated area of knowledge or endeavor to which pursuits, activities, and interests are confined, often one determinedly chosen at a certain time or by the necessities of a situation
the provincial governments and the federal government in Ottawa share some fields of government business — Canadian Citizenship Series
organizations functioning in the field of cartography — Americana Annual
a writer whose reputation … has been pretty much confined to the whodunit field — James Kelly
domain may apply to a clearly defined area of activity marked by a degree of exclusive mastery and control discouraging outside interference or unwarranted intrusion
advances in the domain of the history of ideas — Benjamin Farrington
the domain of artifact typology or cultural taxonomy — Philip Phillips & G.R.Willey
great work in the domain of physiological chemistry of the cornea — Americana Annual
province indicates an area of special jurisdiction, responsibility, competence, power, or influence
economic theory is not the province of the lawyer or courts of law — C.A.Cooke
the almost impertinently realistic explorations into behavior which are the province of the psychiatrist — Edward Sapir
a decision that, in any case, was not within the province of the F.B.I. — New Statesman & Nation
sphere may more strongly imply circumscribed limits setting apart activities and interests
a long and profound process of social change … but this time in the economic sphere — John Strachey
the congress and the president, acting in their proper spheres, must perform their duties to the American people in support of our highest traditions — D.D.Eisenhower
composing, in which sphere he is a prolific worker — London Calling
territory is close to domain but lacks its suggestions of inviolability
prose has preempted a lion's share of the territory once held, either in sovereignty or on equal terms, by poetry — J.B.Lowes
bailiwick may suggest a petty area of individual power and authority
love the Romantics, and feel that lyric poetry and impassioned prose are their proper bailiwick — Katherine F. Gerould
to achieve an authoritative position within your own little bailiwick — W.J.Reilly
II. verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
transitive verb
1. : to expose (as grain, malt, or fiber) to the action of the air and sun in the field
2. : to handle (as a batted ball) while playing in the field
3.
a. : to put (a team or designated players) into the field for actual play
field a weak team
b. : to put into the field
the greatest army any nation ever fielded
intransitive verb
1. obsolete : to take to the battlefield : engage in battle
2. : to play as a fielder
III. adjective
1. : of or having to do with a field: as
a. : growing in or inhabiting the fields or open country or cleared land
b. : made, conducted, or used in the field
field operations
field equipment
c. : operating or active in or assigned to the field
a field agent
a field worker for a benevolent society
2. : of, relating to, or contested on the field and not on the track — see field event
IV. noun
1. : a band of horsemen following the leader of a hunt
2. : a particular area (as of a record in a database) in which the same type of information is regularly recorded
3. : a division of a record in computer storage that consists of one or more characters and contains data (as a name or number) to be treated as a unit
V. transitive verb
1. : to take care of or respond to (as a telephone call or a request)
fielded two bomb threats — Alexander Wolff & Robert Sullivan
2. : to give an impromptu answer or solution to
fielded the questions with ease