case

/keɪs/

/keɪs/

Other forms: cases; casing; cased

A case is a specific instance or example of something. Your teacher might say, "In your case, I think you should go right into the calculus class."

A case is one particular situation — and it's also a legal term for a court proceeding, and a medical term for the details of one specific patient. Another kind of case is a bag that holds or covers something, like a laptop case or a cellphone case. When case is a verb, it means "to scope out a location for burglarizing it later." These various meanings come from two Latin roots: casus, "chance or occasion," and capsa, "box."

Definitions of case

1. noun

   an occurrence of something
   “it was a case of bad judgment”

   synonyms: example, instance

   types:

   humiliation, mortification

   an instance in which you are caused to lose your prestige or self-respect

   bit, piece

   an instance of some kind

   clip, time

   an instance or single occasion for some event

   type of:

   happening, natural event, occurrence, occurrent

   an event that happens
2. noun

   a specific state of mind that is temporary
   “a case of the jitters”

   type of:

   frame of mind, state of mind

   a temporary psychological state
3. noun

   the actual state of things
   “that was not the case”

   type of:

   fact

   a piece of information about circumstances that exist or events that have occurred
4. noun

   a special set of circumstances
   “it may rain in which case the picnic will be canceled”

   synonyms: event

   type of:

   circumstance

   a condition that accompanies or influences some event or activity
5. noun

   a comprehensive term for any proceeding in a court of law whereby an individual seeks a legal remedy
   synonyms: causa, cause, lawsuit, suit

   types:

   civil suit

   a lawsuit alleging violations of civil law by the defendant

   class action, class-action suit

   a lawsuit brought by a representative member of a large group of people on behalf of all members of the group

   countersuit

   a legal proceeding brought against someone who has sued you

   criminal suit

   a lawsuit alleging violations of criminal law by the defendant

   moot

   a hypothetical case that law students argue as an exercise

   bastardy proceeding, paternity suit

   a lawsuit filed to determine the father of a child born out of wedlock (and to provide for the support of the child once paternity is determined)

   type of:

   legal proceeding, proceeding, proceedings

   (law) the institution of a sequence of steps by which legal judgments are invoked
6. noun

   a problem requiring investigation
   “Perry Mason solved the case of the missing heir”

   type of:

   problem

   a question raised for consideration or solution
7. noun

   a statement of facts and reasons used to support an argument
   “he stated his case clearly”

   type of:

   argument, statement

   a fact or assertion offered as evidence that something is true
8. noun

   the housing or outer covering of something
   “the clock has a walnut case”

   synonyms: casing, shell

   types:

   boot

   protective casing for something that resembles a leg

   gear box, gear case, gearbox

   the shell (metal casing) in which a train of gears is sealed

   jacket

   the tough metal shell casing for certain kinds of ammunition

   type of:

   housing

   a protective cover designed to contain or support a mechanical component
9. noun

   the enclosing frame around a door or window opening
   synonyms: casing

   type of:

   framework

   a structure supporting or containing something
10. noun

    a glass container used to store and display items in a shop or museum or home
    synonyms: display case, showcase, vitrine

    types:

    trophy case

    a case in which to display trophies

    type of:

    container

    any object that can be used to hold things (especially a large metal boxlike object of standardized dimensions that can be loaded from one form of transport to another)
11. noun

    an enveloping structure or covering enclosing an animal or plant organ or part
    synonyms: sheath

    types:

    theca

    outer sheath of the pupa of certain insects

    lorica

    a hard protective sheath (as secreted by certain protoctists, for example)

    medullary sheath, myelin sheath

    a layer of myelin encasing (and insulating) the axons of medullated nerve fibers

    neurilemma, neurolemma

    thin membranous sheath around a nerve fiber

    husk

    outer membranous covering of some fruits or seeds

    cornhusk

    the husk of an ear of corn

    hull

    dry outer covering of a fruit or seed or nut

    cod, pod, seedcase

    the vessel that contains the seeds of a plant (not the seeds themselves)

    bract

    a modified leaf or leaflike part just below and protecting an inflorescence

    type of:

    cover, covering, natural covering

    a natural object that covers or envelops
12. noun

    a portable container for carrying several objects
    “the musicians left their instrument cases backstage”

    types:

    baggage, luggage

    cases used to carry belongings when traveling

    briefcase

    a case with a handle; for carrying papers or files or books

    cardcase

    a small case for carrying business cards

    cigarette case

    a small flat case for holding cigarettes; can be carried in a purse or a pocket

    compact, powder compact

    a small cosmetics case with a mirror; to be carried in a woman's purse

    dispatch box, dispatch case

    case consisting of an oblong container (usually having a lock) for carrying dispatches or other valuables

    glasses case

    a case for carrying spectacles

    gun case

    a case for storing a gun

    kit

    a case for containing a set of articles

    letter case

    case for carrying letters

    locket

    a small ornamental case; usually contains a picture or a lock of hair and is worn on a necklace

    pillbox

    a small case for holding pills

    portfolio

    a large, flat, thin case for carrying loose papers or drawings or maps; usually leather

    quiver

    case for holding arrows

    shoe

    (card games) a case from which playing cards are dealt one at a time

    sleeve

    small case into which an object fits

    billfold, notecase, pocketbook, wallet

    a pocket-sized case for holding papers and paper money

    watch case

    the metal case in which the works of a watch are housed

    writing desk

    a portable case containing writing materials and having a writing surface

    attache, attache case

    a shallow and rectangular briefcase

    bag, grip, suitcase, traveling bag, travelling bag

    a portable rectangular container for carrying clothes

    ditty bag

    kit used by sailors and soldiers

    dressing case

    a small piece of luggage for carrying brushes and bottles and toilet articles while traveling

    hand luggage

    luggage that is light enough to be carried by hand

    hat box, hatbox

    a round piece of luggage for carrying hats

    imperial

    a piece of luggage carried on top of a coach

    record cover, record sleeve

    a sleeve for storing a phonograph record

    satchel

    luggage consisting of a small case with a flat bottom and (usually) a shoulder strap

    toilet kit, travel kit

    a kit for carrying toilet articles while traveling

    trunk

    luggage consisting of a large strong case used when traveling or for storage

    type of:

    container

    any object that can be used to hold things (especially a large metal boxlike object of standardized dimensions that can be loaded from one form of transport to another)
13. noun

    bed linen consisting of a cover for a pillow
    synonyms: pillow slip, pillowcase, slip

    type of:

    bed linen

    linen or cotton articles for a bed (as sheets and pillowcases)
14. noun

    the quantity contained in a case
    synonyms: caseful

    type of:

    containerful

    the quantity that a container will hold
15. verb

    enclose in, or as if in, a case
    synonyms: encase, incase

    types:

    pack

    arrange in a container

    box, package

    put into a box

    sack

    put in a sack

    crate

    put into a crate; as for protection

    containerise, containerize

    package in a container

    bag

    put into a bag

    bundle, bundle up, roll up

    make into a bundle

    stow

    fill by packing tightly

    type of:

    close in, enclose, inclose, shut in

    surround completely
16. noun

    a person requiring professional services
    “a typical case was the suburban housewife described by a marriage counselor”

    types:

    client

    a person who seeks the advice of a lawyer

    patient

    a person who requires medical care

    referral

    a person whose case has been referred to a specialist or professional group

    charity case, welfare case

    a case for a welfare worker

    alexic

    a person with alexia

    analysand

    a person undergoing psychoanalysis

    arthritic

    a person afflicted with arthritis

    hypertensive

    a person who has abnormally high blood pressure

    hypochondriac

    a patient with imaginary symptoms and ailments

    hypotensive

    a person who has abnormally low blood pressure

    index case

    the earliest documented case of a disease that is included in an epidemiological study

    inmate, inpatient

    a patient who is residing in the hospital where he is being treated

    outpatient

    a patient who does not reside in the hospital where he is being treated

    vaccinee

    a patient who has been vaccinated

    type of:

    individual, mortal, person, somebody, someone, soul

    a human being
17. noun

    a person who is subjected to experimental or other observational procedures; someone who is an object of investigation
    “the cases that we studied were drawn from two different communities”

    synonyms: guinea pig, subject

    type of:

    individual, mortal, person, somebody, someone, soul

    a human being
18. noun

    a person of a specified kind (usually with many eccentricities)
    “a mental case”

    synonyms: character, eccentric, type

    type of:

    adult, grownup

    a fully developed person from maturity onward
19. noun

    a specific size and style of type within a type family
    synonyms: face, fount, typeface

    types:

    unicameral script

    a script with a single case

    bicameral script

    a script having two distinct cases

    constant-width font, fixed-width font, monospaced font, typewriter font

    a typeface is which each character is given the same width (as by a typewriter)

    proportional font

    any font whose different characters have different widths

    cartridge font, font cartridge

    any font that is contained in a cartridge that can be plugged into a computer printer

    Gothic, black letter

    a heavy typeface in use from 15th to 18th centuries

    bold, bold face, boldface

    a typeface with thick heavy lines

    italic

    a typeface with letters slanting upward to the right

    raster font, screen font

    the font that is displayed on a computer screen

    Helvetica, sans serif

    a typeface in which characters have no serifs

    Latin alphabet, Roman alphabet

    the alphabet evolved by the ancient Romans which serves for writing most of the languages of western Europe

    Hebraic alphabet, Hebrew alphabet, Hebrew script

    a Semitic alphabet used since the 5th century BC for writing the Hebrew language (and later for writing Yiddish and Ladino)

    Cyrillic, Cyrillic alphabet

    an alphabet derived from the Greek alphabet and used for writing Slavic languages (Russian, Bulgarian, Serbian, Ukrainian, and some other Slavic languages)

    Arabic alphabet

    the alphabet of 28 characters derived from Aramaic and used for writing Arabic languages (and borrowed for writing Urdu)

    Bodoni, Bodoni font, modern, modern font

    a typeface (based on an 18th century design by Gianbattista Bodoni) distinguished by regular shape and hairline serifs and heavy downstrokes

    old style, old style font

    a typeface (based on an 18th century design) distinguished by irregularity and slanted ascender serifs and little contrast between light and heavy strokes

    roman, roman letters, roman print, roman type

    a typeface used in ancient Roman inscriptions

    type of:

    type

    printed characters
20. noun

    (printing) the receptacle in which a compositor has his type, which is divided into compartments for the different letters, spaces, or numbers
    “for English, a compositor will ordinarily have two such cases, the upper case containing the capitals and the lower case containing the small letters”

    synonyms: compositor's case, typesetter's case

    type of:

    receptacle

    a container that is used to put or keep things in
21. noun

    nouns or pronouns or adjectives (often marked by inflection) related in some way to other words in a sentence
    synonyms: grammatical case

    types:

    nominative, nominative case, subject case

    the category of nouns serving as the grammatical subject of a verb

    oblique, oblique case

    any grammatical case other than the nominative

    accusative, accusative case, objective case

    the case of nouns serving as the direct object of a verb

    dative, dative case

    the category of nouns serving as the indirect object of a verb

    genitive, genitive case, possessive, possessive case

    the case expressing ownership

    vocative, vocative case

    the case (in some inflected languages) used when the referent of the noun is being addressed

    ablative, ablative case

    the case indicating the agent in passive sentences or the instrument or manner or place of the action described by the verb

    type of:

    grammatical category, syntactic category

    (grammar) a category of words having the same grammatical properties
22. verb

    look over, usually with the intention to rob
    type of:

    inspect

    look over carefully