regular

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See also: regulär

English

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English Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia

Etymology

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From Middle English reguler, from Anglo-Norman reguler, Middle French reguler, regulier, and their source, Latin rēgulāris (continuing rules for guidance), from rēgula (rule), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *reg- (move in a straight line).

Pronunciation

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Adjective

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regular (comparative more regular, superlative most regular)

  1. (Christianity) Bound by religious rule; belonging to a monastic or religious order (often as opposed to secular). [from 14th c.]
    regular clergy, in distinction from the secular clergy
    • 2002, Colin Jones, The Great Nation, Penguin, published 2003, page 201:
      A quarter of a million strong in 1680, the clergy was only half as large in 1789. The unpopular regular clergy were the worst affected.
  2. Having a constant pattern; showing evenness of form or appearance. [from 15th c.]
    Synonyms: equable, uniform, unvarying; see also Thesaurus:steady
    Antonyms: chaotic, irregular; see also Thesaurus:unsteady
  3. (geometry, of a polygon) Both equilateral and equiangular; having all sides of the same length, and all (corresponding) angles of the same size [from 16th c.]
  4. (geometry, of a polyhedron) Whose faces are all congruent regular polygons, equally inclined to each other.
  5. Demonstrating a consistent set of rules; showing order, evenness of operation or occurrence. [from 16th c.]
    Synonyms: in order, ruly, tidy; see also Thesaurus:orderly
    Antonyms: chaotic, tumultuous; see also Thesaurus:disorderly
    • 2011 April 12, A[lison] L[ouise] Kennedy, The Guardian:
      April may be the cruellest month, but I am planning to render it civilised and to take my antibiotics in a regular manner.
  6. (astronomy) Of a moon or other satellite: following a relatively close and prograde orbit with little inclination or eccentricity.
  7. (now rare) Well-behaved, orderly; restrained (of a lifestyle etc.). [from 16th c.]
    Synonyms: decent, seemly, well-mannered
    Antonyms: degenerate, irregular
  8. Happening at constant (especially short) intervals. [from 17th c.]
    Synonyms: cyclical, frequent; see also Thesaurus:periodic
    Antonyms: irregular, noncyclic
    He made regular visits to go see his mother.
  9. (grammar, of a verb, plural, etc) Following a set or common pattern; according to the normal rules of a given language. [from 17th c.]
    Synonym: (verbs) weak
    Antonyms: irregular, (verbs) strong
    "Walked" is the past tense of the regular verb "to walk".
  10. (chiefly US) Having the expected characteristics or appearances; normal, ordinary, standard. [from 17th c.]
    Synonyms: basic, common, unremarkable; see also Thesaurus:normal, Thesaurus:common
    Antonyms: irregular, outlandish, weird; see also Thesaurus:strange
    • 1868-69, Louisa May Alcott, chapter 21, in Little Women[1], part 1:
      “I don’t see how you can write and act such splendid things, Jo. You’re a regular Shakespeare!” exclaimed Beth, who firmly believed that her sisters were gifted with wonderful genius in all things.
    • 1913, Joseph C[rosby] Lincoln, chapter I, in Mr. Pratt’s Patients, New York, N.Y., London: D[aniel] Appleton and Company, →OCLC:
      For a spell we done pretty well. Then there came a reg'lar terror of a sou'wester same as you don't get one summer in a thousand, and blowed the shanty flat and ripped about half of the weir poles out of the sand.
  11. (chiefly military) Permanently organised; being part of a set professional body of troops. [from 17th c.]
    Antonym: irregular
  12. Having bowel movements or menstrual periods at constant intervals in the expected way. [from 18th c.]
    Maintaining a high-fibre diet keeps you regular.
    • 2015, Bill Bryson, The Road to Little Dribbling: More Notes from a Small Island, page 206:
      Gulls cawed and wheeled overhead, dropping splatty white cluster bombs on rooftops and pavements. Goodness knows what those gulls eat, but it certainly keeps them regular.
  13. (colloquial) Exemplary; excellent example of; utter, downright. [from 18th c.]
    Synonyms: absolute, thorough, unalloyed; see also Thesaurus:total
    a regular genius; a regular John Bull
  14. (botany, zoology) Having all the parts of the same kind alike in size and shape.
    a regular flower; a regular sea urchin
  15. (crystallography) Isometric.
  16. (snowboarding) Riding with the left foot forward.
    Antonym: goofy
  17. (mathematical analysis, not comparable, of a Borel measure) Such that every set in its domain is both outer regular and inner regular.
  18. (commutative algebra, not comparable, of a local ring) Noetherian and such that the minimal number of generators of the maximal ideal is equal to the Krull dimension of the ring.
  19. (algebraic geometry, not comparable, of a scheme) Such that the local ring at every point is regular.
  20. (obsolete, not comparable, of a ring) A von Neumann regular: such that every left module (over the given ring) is flat.
    Synonym: absolutely flat

Antonyms

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Coordinate terms

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Derived terms

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Translations

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See also

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  • register (not etymologically related but has semantic associations)

Adverb

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regular (not comparable)

  1. (archaic, dialect, nonstandard) Regularly, on a regular basis.
    • 1861, George Eliot, Silas Marner, London: Penguin Books, published 1967, page 131:
      'And if the knowledge wasn'y well come by, why, you might ha' made up for it by coming to church reg'lar.'
    • 1902, John Buchan, The Outgoing of the Tide:
      Though no minister would visit the Skerburnfoot, or, if he went, departed quicker than he came, the girl Ailie attended regular at the catechising at the mains of Sker.
    • 1946, William Hatfiled, Buffalo Jim, Oxford: Geoffrey Cumberlege, page 47:
      "There's only twenty men staying in the house regular," said Ahearne, showing him around[.]
    • 1961, Colin Thiele, The Sun on the Stubble, Melbourne: Rigby Limited, page 113:
      "Drain her every thousand, regular. Don't do it myself, o' course; just drop her in at the lubritorium."
    • 1988, Mary Steele, Mallyroot's Pub at Misery Ponds, Ringwood: Puffin Books, page 37:
      "All we've got to do is stick 'em in the bedroom and feed 'em regular."

Noun

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regular (plural regulars)

  1. A member of the British Army (as opposed to a member of the Territorial Army or Reserve).
  2. A frequent, routine visitor to an establishment.
    Bartenders usually know their regulars by name.
  3. A member of an armed forces or police force.
  4. A frequent customer, client or business partner.
    This gentleman was one of the architect's regulars.
  5. (Canada) A coffee with one cream and one sugar.
  6. Anything that is normal or standard.
    • 2011, Jamie MacLennan, ZhaoHui Tang, Bogdan Crivat, Data Mining with Microsoft SQL Server 2008:
      You separate the marbles by color until you have four groups, but then you notice that some of the marbles are regulars, some are shooters, and some are peewees.
  7. A member of a religious order who has taken the three ordinary vows.
  8. One who does not regularly attend a venue.
    • 2015, Brian Cook, Hands Across The Sea, page 190:
      There's one neighborhood tavern where the regulars and irregulars go after a hard day to unlax and rewind, throw back a few, and just hang out - you know the one.
  9. A number for each year, giving, added to the concurrents, the number of the day of the week on which the Paschal full moon falls.
  10. A fixed number for each month serving to ascertain the day of the week, or the age of the moon, on the first day of any month.

Synonyms

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Antonyms

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Translations

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References

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Asturian

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Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /reɡuˈlaɾ/, [re.ɣ̞uˈlaɾ]
  • Rhymes: -aɾ
  • Hyphenation: re‧gu‧lar

Etymology 1

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Borrowed from Late Latin rēgulāris.

Adjective

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regular (epicene, plural regulares)

  1. regular
  2. fine, OK, average
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Etymology 2

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Borrowed from Latin rēgulāre, present active infinitive of rēgulō. Compare the doublet reglar, borrowed earlier from the same source.

Verb

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regular (first-person singular indicative present regulo, past participle reguláu)

  1. to regulate
Conjugation
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Catalan

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Etymology 1

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Borrowed from Late Latin rēgulāris.

Pronunciation

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Adjective

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regular m or f (masculine and feminine plural regulars)

  1. regular (having a constant pattern)
    Antonym: irregular
  2. normal, average
  3. (geometry) regular (both equilateral and equiangular)
    Antonym: irregular
Derived terms
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Etymology 2

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Borrowed from Latin rēgulāre.

Pronunciation

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Verb

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regular (first-person singular present regulo, first-person singular preterite regulí, past participle regulat)

  1. (transitive) to regulate
Conjugation
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Derived terms
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Further reading

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Galician

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Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): (standard) /reɡuˈlaɾ/ [re.ɣ̞uˈlaɾ]
  • IPA(key): (gheada) /reħuˈlaɾ/ [re.ħuˈlaɾ]

  • Rhymes: -aɾ
  • Hyphenation: re‧gu‧lar

Etymology 1

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Attested since circa 1300. Borrowed from Late Latin rēgulāris.

Adjective

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regular m or f (plural regulares)

  1. regular
  2. average
Derived terms
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Etymology 2

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Learned borrowing from Latin rēgulō.

Verb

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regular (first-person singular present regulo, first-person singular preterite regulei, past participle regulado)

  1. to regulate
  2. to tune (an engine)
Conjugation
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References

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Portuguese

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Etymology 1

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Learned borrowing from Late Latin rēgulāris.

Pronunciation

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  • (Portugal) IPA(key): /ʁɨ.ɡuˈlaɾ/ [ʁɨ.ɣuˈlaɾ]
    • (Southern Portugal) IPA(key): /ʁɨ.ɡuˈla.ɾi/ [ʁɨ.ɣuˈla.ɾi]

  • Hyphenation: re‧gu‧lar

Adjective

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regular m or f (plural regulares, comparable, comparative mais regular, superlative o mais regular or regularíssimo)

  1. regular
  2. average
Derived terms
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Etymology 2

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Learned borrowing from Latin rēgulāre. Compare the doublet regrar, borrowed earlier from the same source.

Pronunciation

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  • (Portugal) IPA(key): /ʁɨ.ɡuˈlaɾ/ [ʁɨ.ɣuˈlaɾ]
    • (Southern Portugal) IPA(key): /ʁɨ.ɡuˈla.ɾi/ [ʁɨ.ɣuˈla.ɾi]

  • Hyphenation: re‧gu‧lar

Verb

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regular (first-person singular present regulo, first-person singular preterite regulei, past participle regulado)

  1. to regulate
  2. to tune (an engine)
  3. to set (a watch, clock)
Conjugation
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Derived terms
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Romanian

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Alternative forms

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Etymology

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Borrowed from Latin rēgulāris. By surface analysis, regulă +‎ -ar.

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /re.ɡuˈlar/
  • Rhymes: -ar
  • Hyphenation: re‧gu‧lar

Adjective

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regular m or n (feminine singular regulară, masculine plural regulari, feminine and neuter plural regulare)

  1. regular

Declension

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Further reading

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Spanish

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Pronunciation

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Etymology 1

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Borrowed from Late Latin rēgulāris.

Adjective

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regular m or f (masculine and feminine plural regulares)

  1. regular, steady, even
  2. fair, fairly good, average
  3. common, ordinary, middling, so-so
  4. (grammar) regular
Derived terms
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Etymology 2

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Borrowed from Latin rēgulāre.

Verb

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regular (first-person singular present regulo, first-person singular preterite regulé, past participle regulado)

  1. to regulate
  2. to control
  3. to adjust
  4. to put in order
Conjugation
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Further reading

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Tagalog

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Etymology

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Borrowed from Spanish regular.

Pronunciation

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Adjective

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regulár (Baybayin spelling ᜇᜒᜄᜓᜎᜇ᜔)

  1. regular; usual; ordinary
    Synonyms: karaniwan, pangkaraniwan
  2. habitual; steady; permanent
    Synonyms: pirmihan, palagian
  3. uniform; not changing
  4. customary; usual
    Synonyms: katamtaman, kainaman

Derived terms

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Further reading

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  • regular”, in Pambansang Diksiyonaryo | Diksiyonaryo.ph, Manila, 2018