Synonyms/Hypernyms (Ordered by Estimated Frequency) of verb direct
13 senses of direct
Sense 1
direct -- (command with authority; "He directed the children to do their homework")
=> order, tell, enjoin, say -- (give instructions to or direct somebody to do something with authority; "I said to him to go home"; "She ordered him to do the shopping"; "The mother told the child to get dressed")
Sense 2
target, aim, place, direct, point -- (intend (something) to move towards a certain goal; "He aimed his fists towards his opponent's face"; "criticism directed at her superior"; "direct your anger towards others, not towards yourself")
=> aim, take, train, take aim, direct -- (point or cause to go (blows, weapons, or objects such as photographic equipment) towards; "Please don't aim at your little brother!"; "He trained his gun on the burglar"; "Don't train your camera on the women"; "Take a swipe at one's opponent")
Sense 3
direct -- (guide the actors in (plays and films))
=> make, create -- (make or cause to be or to become; "make a mess in one's office"; "create a furor")
Sense 4
direct -- (be in charge of)
=> manage, deal, care, handle -- (be in charge of, act on, or dispose of; "I can deal with this crew of workers"; "This blender can't handle nuts"; "She managed her parents' affairs after they got too old")
Sense 5
lead, take, direct, conduct, guide -- (take somebody somewhere; "We lead him to our chief"; "can you take me to the main entrance?"; "He conducted us to the palace")
Sense 6
send, direct -- (cause to go somewhere; "The explosion sent the car flying in the air"; "She sent her children to camp"; "He directed all his energies into his dissertation")
=> move, displace -- (cause to move or shift into a new position or place, both in a concrete and in an abstract sense; "Move those boxes into the corner, please"; "I'm moving my money to another bank"; "The director moved more responsibilities onto his new assistant")
Sense 7
aim, take, train, take aim, direct -- (point or cause to go (blows, weapons, or objects such as photographic equipment) towards; "Please don't aim at your little brother!"; "He trained his gun on the burglar"; "Don't train your camera on the women"; "Take a swipe at one's opponent")
=> position -- (cause to be in an appropriate place, state, or relation)
Sense 8
conduct, lead, direct -- (lead, as in the performance of a composition; "conduct an orchestra; Barenboim conducted the Chicago symphony for years")
=> perform, execute, do -- (carry out or perform an action; "John did the painting, the weeding, and he cleaned out the gutters"; "the skater executed a triple pirouette"; "she did a little dance")
Sense 9
direct -- (give directions to; point somebody into a certain direction; "I directed them towards the town hall")
=> instruct, apprise, apprize -- (make aware of; "Have the students been apprised of the tuition hike?")
Sense 10
calculate, aim, direct -- (specifically design a product, event, or activity for a certain public)
=> intend, destine, designate, specify -- (design or destine; "She was intended to become the director")
Sense 11
steer, maneuver, manoeuver, manoeuvre, direct, point, head, guide, channelize, channelise -- (direct the course; determine the direction of travelling)
=> control, command -- (exercise authoritative control or power over; "control the budget"; "Command the military forces")
Sense 12
address, direct -- (put an address on (an envelope))
=> label -- (assign a label to; designate with a label; "These students were labelled `learning disabled'")
Sense 13
mastermind, engineer, direct, organize, organise, orchestrate -- (plan and direct (a complex undertaking); "he masterminded the robbery")
=> plan -- (make plans for something; "He is planning a trip with his family")
Antonyms of adj directed
2 senses of directed
Sense 1
directed -- ((often used in combination) having a specified direction; "a positively directed vector"; "goal-directed")
INDIRECT (VIA oriented) -> unoriented -- (not having position or goal definitely set or ascertained; "engaged in unoriented study"; "unoriented until she looked at the map")
Sense 2
directed -- (manageable by a supervising agent; "a directed program of study")
INDIRECT (VIA manageable) -> unmanageable, difficult -- (hard to control; "a difficult child", "an unmanageable situation")
Similarity of adj directed
2 senses of directed
Sense 1
directed -- ((often used in combination) having a specified direction; "a positively directed vector"; "goal-directed")
=> oriented (vs. unoriented), orientated -- (adjusted or located in relation to surroundings or circumstances; sometimes used in combination; "the house had its large windows oriented toward the ocean view"; "helping freshmen become oriented to college life"; "the book is value-oriented throughout")
Sense 2
directed -- (manageable by a supervising agent; "a directed program of study")
=> manageable (vs. unmanageable) -- (capable of being managed or controlled)