POINTER

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does pointer mean? 

• POINTER (noun)
  The noun POINTER has 4 senses:

1. a mark to indicate a direction or relation

2. an indicator as on a dial

3. (computer science) indicator consisting of a movable spot of light (an icon) on a visual display; moving it allows the user to point to commands or screen positions

4. a strong slender smooth-haired dog of Spanish origin having a white coat with brown or black patches; scents out and points to game

  Familiarity information: POINTER used as a noun is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• POINTER (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A mark to indicate a direction or relation

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Synonyms:

arrow; pointer

Hypernyms ("pointer" is a kind of...):

mark (a written or printed symbol (as for punctuation))

Meronyms (parts of "pointer"):

shaft (a line that forms the length of an arrow pointer)

head; point (a V-shaped mark at one end of an arrow pointer)

Derivation:

point (indicate a place, direction, person, or thing; either spatially or figuratively)

point (be positionable in a specified manner)

point (be oriented)

Sense 2

Meaning:

An indicator as on a dial

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("pointer" is a kind of...):

indicator (a device for showing the operating condition of some system)

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

hand (a rotating pointer on the face of a timepiece)

electronic stylus; light pen ((computer science) a pointer that when pointed at a computer display senses whether or not the spot is illuminated)

needle (a slender pointer for indicating the reading on the scale of a measuring instrument)

Derivation:

point (indicate a place, direction, person, or thing; either spatially or figuratively)

point (be positionable in a specified manner)

point (be oriented)

Sense 3

Meaning:

(computer science) indicator consisting of a movable spot of light (an icon) on a visual display; moving it allows the user to point to commands or screen positions

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Synonyms:

cursor; pointer

Hypernyms ("pointer" is a kind of...):

indicator (a device for showing the operating condition of some system)

Domain category:

computer science; computing (the branch of engineering science that studies (with the aid of computers) computable processes and structures)

Derivation:

point (indicate a place, direction, person, or thing; either spatially or figuratively)

point (be positionable in a specified manner)

Sense 4

Meaning:

A strong slender smooth-haired dog of Spanish origin having a white coat with brown or black patches; scents out and points to game

Classified under:

Nouns denoting animals

Synonyms:

pointer; Spanish pointer

Hypernyms ("pointer" is a kind of...):

gun dog; sporting dog (a dog trained to work with sportsmen when they hunt with guns)

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

German short-haired pointer (liver or liver-and-white hunting dog developed in Germany; 3/4 pointer and 1/4 bloodhound)

Hungarian pointer; vizsla (Hungarian hunting dog resembling the Weimaraner but having a rich deep red coat)

 Context examples 

But Marianne could no more satisfy him as to the colour of Mr. Willoughby's pointer, than he could describe to her the shades of his mind.

(Sense and Sensibility, by Jane Austen)

He got three and a half brace, but I shot his liver-coloured pointer, so he had to pay.

(Rodney Stone, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

A data type comprised of an integer or pointer that uniquely identifies an object.

(Object Identifier Data Type, NCI Thesaurus/BRIDG)

An integer or pointer that uniquely identifies an object.

(Object Identifier, NCI Thesaurus)

The Newfoundland went first, followed by the three short-haired pointers, the two mongrels hanging more grittily on to life, but going in the end.

(The Call of the Wild, by Jack London)

A dog—old Carlo, Mr. Rivers' pointer, as I saw in a moment—was pushing the gate with his nose, and St. John himself leant upon it with folded arms; his brow knit, his gaze, grave almost to displeasure, fixed on me.

(Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë)

She listened to college stories with deep interest, caressed pointers and poodles without a murmur, agreed heartily that Tom Brown was a brick, regardless of the improper form of praise, and when one lad proposed a visit to his turtle tank, she went with an alacrity which caused Mamma to smile upon her, as that motherly lady settled the cap which was left in a ruinous condition by filial hugs, bearlike but affectionate, and dearer to her than the most faultless coiffure from the hands of an inspired Frenchwoman.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)

But he is a pleasant, good humoured fellow, and has got the nicest little black bitch of a pointer I ever saw.

(Sense and Sensibility, by Jane Austen)

Three were short-haired pointers, one was a Newfoundland, and the other two were mongrels of indeterminate breed.

(The Call of the Wild, by Jack London)

No weather seemed to hinder him in these pastoral excursions: rain or fair, he would, when his hours of morning study were over, take his hat, and, followed by his father's old pointer, Carlo, go out on his mission of love or duty—I scarcely know in which light he regarded it.

(Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë)