Point Meaning
/pɔɪnt/Definition, CEFR level A1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
Listen pronunciation
Definition
nounA small dot or mark.
nounA small dot or mark., Something tiny, as a pinprick; a very small mark.
Sentence Examples
Excuse me; allow me to point out three errors in the above article.
Your remarks are besides the point.
Just point the camera and press the button.
CEFR Practice Quiz
The lawyer made a key ____ during the closing statements of the trial.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
She made a compelling ____ about the need for greater investment in public transport.
Word Origin & History
From Middle English poynt, from Old French point m (“dot; minute amount”), from Latin pūnctum (“a hole punched in; a point, puncture”), substantive use of pūnctus m, perfect passive participle of pungō (“to prick, punch”); alternatively, from Old French pointe f (“sharp tip”), from Latin pūncta f (past participle), all from Proto-Italic *pungō (“to sting, prick”). Mostly displaced native Middle English ord (“point”), from Old English ord (“point”). Doublet of pointe, ponto, puncto, punctum, punt, and punto.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"Commas and points they set exactly right."
— 1735, Alexander Pope, The Prologue to the Satires:
"Sound the trumpet — not a levant, or a flourish, but a point of war."
— 1826, [Walter Scott], Woodstock; Or, The Cavalier. […], volume (please specify |volume=I to III), Edinburgh: […] [James Ballantyne and Co.] for Archibald Constable and Co.; London: Longman, Rees, Orme, Brown, and Green, →OCLC:
"I told him about everything I could think of; and what I couldn't think of he did. He asked about six questions during my yarn, but every question had a point to it. At the end he bowed and thanked me once more. As a thanker he was main-truck high; I never see anybody so polite."
— 1913, Joseph C[rosby] Lincoln, chapter IV, in Mr. Pratt’s Patients, New York, N.Y.; London: D[aniel] Appleton and Company, →OCLC:
"But I love you / More than I wanted to / There's no point in trying to pretend"
— 1983 October 31, Genesis, “That's All”, in Genesis:
"We're all gonna die
What's the point in life
What's the point in life if we all die?"
— 2023, “What's the Point in Life”, in Killjoy, performed by Coach Party:
Explore More A1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The lawyer made a key ____ during the closing statements of the trial.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
She made a compelling ____ about the need for greater investment in public transport.