I. ˈmethəd noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle French or Latin; Middle French methode, from Latin methodus, from Greek methodos, from meta- + hodos way — more at cede
1. : a procedure or process for attaining an object: as
a. obsolete : the medical system of the methodists
b.
(1) : a systematic procedure, technique, or set of rules employed in philosophical inquiry : a particular approach to problems of truth or knowledge
the pragmatic method tries to interpret each notion by tracing its respective practical consequences — William James
the dialectical method assumes the primacy of matter
the method of the positivists applied to philosophy the procedures of the natural sciences
(2) : a discipline or system sometimes considered a branch of logic that deals with the principles applicable to inquiry into or exposition of some subject
(3) : a systematic procedure, technique, or mode of inquiry employed by or proper to a particular science, art, or discipline : methodology
the historical method
the method of logic
exploring the broadest possibilities of iconographic method — Harry Bober
(4) : a systematic plan followed in presenting material for instruction
the lecture method
a course in methods
(5) : a particular way of viewing, organizing, and giving shape and significance to artistic materials
hadn't found his method , but he had definitely found his theme — Graham Greene
method … can be determined only from the work as a whole — M.K.Spears
method and sensibility ought never … to be kept long separate — R.P.Blackmur
c.
(1) : a way, technique, or process of or for doing something
there are three methods of touring Britain by car — Richard Joseph
found their respective working methods congenial — Current Biography
often slow in their business methods — T.R.Ybarra
to whom she owed her excellent method — Opera News
(2) : a body of skills or techniques
deeply professional, learned in the art of the novel, heavily armed with method — J.D.Scott b. 1917
2.
a. : orderly arrangement, development, or classification : plan , design
the book is completely lacking in method
b. obsolete
(1) : a methodical exposition
(2) : a table of contents
(3) : an arrangement that follows a plan or design
c. : orderliness and regularity or habitual practice of them in action
thrift was as much in her nature as method — Sylvia T. Warner
time enough to do everything if only you used method — Angela Thirkell
Synonyms:
method , mode , manner , way , fashion , and system can all indicate the means used or the procedure followed in doing a given kind of work or achieving a given end. method can apply to any plan or procedure but usually implies an orderly, logical, effective plan or procedure, connoting also regularity
the crude methods of trial and error — Henry Suzzallo
the method of this book is to present a series of successive scenes of English life — G.M.Trevelyan
Marx's doctrine is not a system of scientific truths, it merely represents a method — one possible approach to social and historical reflection — Paolo Milano
surely not to leave to fitful chance the things that method and system and science should order and adjust — B.N.Cardozo
mode , sometimes interchangeable with method , seldom implies order or logic, suggesting rather custom, tradition, or personal preference
a rational mode of dealing with the insane — W.R.Inge
this intuition is essentially an aesthetic mode of apprehension — H.J.Muller
the mode of reproduction of plants and animals, however, is fundamentally identical — Encyc. Americana
manner usually suggests a personal or peculiar course or procedure, often interchanging with mode in this sense
the manner by which the present pattern of land ownership in this country has evolved — A.F.Gustafson
it is not consistent with his manner of writing Latin — G.C.Sellery
bearing loaves of sweet bread and of cornbread made with yeast in the Portuguese manner — Dana Burnet
way is general and interchangeable with method , mode , or manner
a special way to raise orchids
the way the machine works
the town's way of life
one's way of tying his tie
fashion , in this comparison, may be distinguished from way in often suggesting a more superficial origin or source as in a mere fashion or ephemeral style
was so popular that his subjects took to wearing monocles, in his fashion — Time
Harvard has stoutly and successfully resisted the fashion by which the grounds of an American college have come to be known as a campus — Official Register of Harvard University
who were poor in a fashion unknown to North America — Herbert Agar
system suggests a fully developed, often carefully formulated method, usually emphasizing the idea of rational orderliness
every new discovery claims to form an addition to the system of science as transmitted from the past — Michael Polanyi
behavior which is not in accord with the individual's system elicits responses of fear — Ralph Linton
an earnest plea for radical reformation of the system of assessment and taxation — C.A.Duniway
II. noun
Usage: usually capitalized
: a dramatic technique by which an actor seeks to gain complete identification with the inner personality of the character being portrayed