an ornamental scroll-shaped bracket (especially one used to support a wall fixture); "the bust of Napoleon stood on a console"
a scientific instrument consisting of displays and an input device that an operator can use to monitor and control a system (especially a computer system)
an obstruction that stands in the way (and must be removed or surmounted or circumvented)
something immaterial that stands in the way and must be circumvented or surmounted; "lack of imagination is an obstacle to one's advancement"; "the poverty of a district is an obstacle to good education"; "the filibuster was a major obstruction to the success of their plan"
the act of referring or consulting; "reference to an encyclopedia produced the answer"
the most direct or specific meaning of a word or expression; the class of objects that an expression refers to; "the extension of `satellite of Mars' is the set containing only Demos and Phobos"
the relation between a word or phrase and the object or idea it refers to; "he argued that reference is a consequence of conditioned reflexes"
a publication (or a passage from a publication) that is referred to; "he carried an armful of references back to his desk"; "he spent hours looking for the source of that quotation"
a subdivision of a written work; usually numbered and titled; "he read a chapter every night before falling asleep"
a series of related events forming an episode; "a chapter of disasters"
a local branch of some fraternity or association; "he joined the Atlanta chapter"
an ecclesiastical assembly of the monks in a monastery or even of the canons of a church
any distinct period in history or in a person's life; "the industrial revolution opened a new chapter in British history"; "the divorce was an ugly chapter in their relationship"