FRAME OF REFERENCE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does frame of reference mean? 

• FRAME OF REFERENCE (noun)
  The noun FRAME OF REFERENCE has 2 senses:

1. a system that uses coordinates to establish position

2. a system of assumptions and standards that sanction behavior and give it meaning

  Familiarity information: FRAME OF REFERENCE used as a noun is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• FRAME OF REFERENCE (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A system that uses coordinates to establish position

Classified under:

Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents

Synonyms:

coordinate system; frame of reference; reference frame; reference system

Hypernyms ("frame of reference" is a kind of...):

arrangement; organisation; organization; system (an organized structure for arranging or classifying)

Meronyms (parts of "frame of reference"):

coordinate axis (one of the fixed reference lines of a coordinate system)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "frame of reference"):

Cartesian coordinate system (a coordinate system for which the coordinates of a point are its distances from a set perpendicular lines that intersect at the origin of the system)

inertial frame; inertial reference frame (a coordinate system in which Newton's first law of motion is valid)

space-time; space-time continuum (the four-dimensional coordinate system (3 dimensions of space and 1 of time) in which physical events are located)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A system of assumptions and standards that sanction behavior and give it meaning

Classified under:

Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents

Synonyms:

frame; frame of reference

Hypernyms ("frame of reference" is a kind of...):

system; system of rules (a complex of methods or rules governing behavior)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "frame of reference"):

vocabulary (the system of techniques or symbols serving as a means of expression (as in arts or crafts))