Meaning of point In English

• 0 an idea, opinion, or piece of information that is said or written:

  • I'd like to discuss the first point in your essay.

  • You made some interesting points in your speech.

  • The point is, if you don't claim the money now you might never get it.

  • I think you missed (= did not understand) the point of what she was saying.

  • I take your point/Point taken (= I understand that what you are saying is important).

  • Please get to the point (= say the thing that is most important to you).

  • He hasn't got much money, but that's not the point (= that is not the important thing).

  • Yes, I can see your point/you've got a point there.

  • OK, you've made your point (= told us your opinion) - there's no need to go on about it.

  • The fact that he doesn't want to come is beside the point - he should have been invited.

  • "We'll take the bus." "But we don't have any money for the fare." "That's a point."

• 1 a particular time or stage reached in a process:

  • At that point, a soldier opened fire on the car.

  • I was completely lost at one point.

  • [ + question word ] It was so confusing that eventually it got to the point where no one knew what was going on.

  • I said I'd tell her the bad news, but when it came to the point (= when I had to do it), I couldn't.

  • the point where the road bends

  • This is a good point from which to watch the race.

• 2 purpose or usefulness:

  • [ + -ing verb ] informal There's no point arguing about it - we're going and that's that.

  • I'd like to write to him, but what's the point? He never writes back.

  • I see little point in discussing this further.

• 3 a mark or unit for counting, especially how much a person or team has scored in a sport:

  • The youngest skier won the most points.

  • He won the world heavyweight boxing championship on points (= as a result of the points that he had won).

  • Interest rates have risen by two percentage points (= two percent).

  • The large letters are in 7.5 point type, and the small letters are in 6 point.

• 4 the sharp end of something, such as a knife:

  • The knife landed with its point sticking into the floor.

  • Be careful with that needle - it has a very sharp point.

• 5 a particular quality or characteristic of a person or thing:

  • There are various points to look out for when you're judging dogs in a competition.

  • He's boring, but I suppose he has his good points.

  • I think her kindness is one of her strong points (= one of her good qualities).

• 6 a long, thin area of land that stretches out into the sea:

  • Spurn Point

• 7 a small, round spot that is used in numbers to separate whole numbers from parts of numbers:

  • One kilogram equals two point two (= 2.2) pounds.

  • The error occurred when someone left out the decimal point.

• 8 the toes of a ballet dancer's shoes:

  • She is learning how to dance on her points.

• 9 a socket to which a wire from a piece of electrical equipment is connected in order to supply it with electricity or a radio, television, or other signal:

  • a TV antenna point

  • There is a phone point in every room.

  • He checked the points and plugs and topped up the oil.

• 10 a place on a railway track where the rails (= metal bars on which the trains travel) can be moved to allow a train to change from one track to another:

  • The train rattled as it went over the points.

• 11 a small, round mark on a line, plan, or map to show the position of something:

  • Join the points A and B together on the diagram with a straight line.

  • I could just make out the tiny points of a car's headlights far away.

• 12 to direct other people's attention to something by holding out your finger towards it:

  • "Look at that!" she said, pointing at the hole in the door.

  • Small children are often told that it's rude to point.

  • He said that the man had pointed a knife at him.

  • The road sign points left.

  • All the cars were pointing in the same direction.

  • There was an arrow pointing to the door.

• 13 to fill the gaps between bricks, etc. with mortar (= a mixture of sand, water, and cement):

  • The physical work of preservation includes pointing handmade bricks and repairing windows.

  • They failed to identify problems such as condensation, badly pointed walls and leaky gutters.

• 14 relating to when a ballet dancer dances on their toes:

  • a pair of point shoes

  • Today we'll do some point work.

• 15 the sharp or narrow end of something, such as a knife or pin:

  • I stuck myself with the point of the needle.

• 16 an idea, opinion, or piece of information that is said or written:

  • He made some good points in his speech.

  • The lawyers reviewed the issues point by point.

  • You have a point (= What you say is reasonable).

  • He doesn’t have much money, but that’s not the point.

• 17 a particular quality or characteristic:

  • Truthfulness is not one of his strong points.

• 18 a particular time, place, or stage reached in a process:

  • She felt that they were at a critical point in their marriage.

• 19 purpose or usefulness:

  • What’s the point of leaving at six in the morning?

• 20 a unit for measuring or counting:

  • Our team won by seven points.

  • Interest rates dropped two percentage points.

• 21 an exact position in space that has no size and is usually represented by a small, round mark

• 22 to direct other people’s attention to something by signaling toward it with your finger:

  • [ I ] "Look," she said, pointing at the sign.

  • [ M ] Which one is your sister – would you point her out to me?

  • [ I ] The arrow points left.

• 23 an idea, opinion, or piece of information that is spoken or written:

  • I agree with your point about the management team.

  • Thank you, that was a very interesting point.

  • make/raise a/the point He made the point quite forcefully that no more money was available.

  • get a point across I wasn't sure what point she was trying to get across.

  • prove sb's point I think that proves my point. The figures just don't stack up.

• 24 the meaning or most important part of what is being said or written:

  • The point is that on weekends and late at night there should always be someone on duty to deal with emergencies.

  • come/get to the point We haven't got all day, so please get to the point.

  • To talk only about managing one country's economy is to miss the point.

  • The list could go on and on, but I think you get the point.

• 25 purpose, or the fact of something being useful:

  • no point (in doing sth) There is no point in discussing this further if you've already made up your mind.

• 26 a particular detail or characteristic of a person or thing:

  • the main points I noted down the main points of his speech.

  • good/bad point The government's financial plan has both its good and its bad points.

  • When you are appraising someone, try to emphasize their good points.

  • Speaking in public is not one of her strong points.

• 27 one part that a meeting, plan, etc. is divided into:

  • We have seven points on the agenda today.

  • Has anyone any comments on Point 4?

  • We need to examine the proposals point by point.

  • My boss gave me a five-point plan for improving my performance.

• 28 a particular time or stage that is reached in a process:

  • highest/lowest point Copper prices rose to their highest point in two weeks.

  • The stock went to $74 at one point.

  • get to/reach a/the point It's taken us years to get to the point where we're making a reasonable profit.

  • We shall need to discuss this further at some point.

  • at this point (in time) This is not something that we want to introduce at this point in time.

• 29 a mark or unit for counting or measuring something:

  • score points You will normally be accepted if you score more than 20 points on the test.

  • The bond rose 10 basis points, from 2.932 to 2.942 percent.

  • Interest rates have gone up two percentage points.

  • We will introduce an Australian-style points system for work permits.

• 30 a particular place:

  • The building served as the group's meeting point.

  • The store is the focal point of the small community.

• 31 a small round mark that is used in numbers to separate whole numbers from parts of numbers:

  • A kilogram equals two point two (2.2) pounds.

  • a decimal point

• 32 used when you are saying that you think that something that someone has said is important:

  • I take your point. That's something we need to consider.

• 33 to always do something, or to take particular care to do something:

  • She always makes a point of inviting all her staff to briefing meetings.

• 34 to tell people your opinion:

  • OK, you've made your point. Let someone else say what they think now.

• 35 very important or suitable for the subject being discussed:

  • His remarks about the pay structure were well expressed and to the point.

• 36 partly, or to a limited degree:

  • The new system was working - up to a point.

• 37 to show someone the direction that they should go, or what they should do:

  • The figures pointed us in the direction that we should be taking over the next year or so.

• 38 to accuse someone of being responsible for something bad that has happened:

  • The reports are understood not to point the finger at the group's finance director.