ad

Less common meanings

5. 5
   Sayay-DEEUS/ˌeɪˈdi/UK/ˌeɪˈdiː/

   assistant directornoun · ADcountable or uncountableinitialism

   Short for assistant director: a person on a film or TV production who helps the director by organizing the schedule, cast and crew on set.

   The first AD shouted for quiet before every take.

   Two ADs ran between the trailers rounding up the cast.

   Note

   Film sets rank the job: the first AD runs the floor and keeps the shoot on schedule, while second and third ADs handle paperwork and bring the cast where they are needed. Written with periods, A.D., the initials look exactly like the date marker, though context keeps the two apart. Source

   Checked 30 Oct 2026 · 5 facts

   • The first assistant director manages the set and the filming schedule. screenskills.com
   • Second assistant directors handle production paperwork. en.wikipedia.org
   • Third assistant directors help move cast members to the set. screenaccessalberta.ca
   • The film abbreviation AD can be written A.D. en.wiktionary.org
   • A.D. is also the date marker abbreviating anno Domini. en.wiktionary.org
6. 6
   tennisnoununcountable

   In tennis, advantage; also, the left-hand side of a player's half of the court, from the player's own view, where the advantage point after deuce is always played.

   Her ace at deuce made the score ad in, and she won the game on the very next point.

   His slice serve into the ad court won him the game.

   UsageIn score calls: ad in when the server leads after deuce, ad out when the receiver does.

   Similaradvantage

   Note

   The same word names the ad court, the left half of each player's side, opposite the deuce court; in David Foster Wallace's account, a backhand from Agassi pulls Federer far out to his ad side. Source

   Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 2 facts

   • The ad court is the left half from each player's perspective, opposite the deuce court. itftennis.com
   • David Foster Wallace describes an Agassi backhand pulling Federer wide to his ad side. ialjs.org
7. 7
   Sayay-DEEUS/ˌeɪˈdi/UK/ˌeɪˈdiː/

   audio descriptionnoun · ADcountable or uncountableabbreviation

   Short for audio description: a spoken track that describes what is happening on screen or stage for blind and partially sighted people.

   The broadcaster added AD to its entire drama lineup this year.

   The film's AD was recorded by a professional narrator.

   UsageUsually without an article for the feature: a film with AD, switch on AD.

   Note

   Broadcasters use the letters for the narrated track itself and for the work of producing it. Written in capitals, AD can be countable, as in a film's AD, or uncountable, as when a broadcaster adds AD to its lineup. The track is timed to the footage, with a narrator describing what is happening for blind and partially sighted viewers.

8. 8
   noununcountable

   Clipped form of advertising: the promotion of goods and services as an activity or a business, found mostly in front of another noun.

   The ad industry spent the decade chasing audiences from television to social media.

   She spent twenty years as an ad executive before opening her own design studio.

   UsageMostly before another noun: ad agency, ad executive. Alone, say you work in advertising.

   Similaradvertising

   Note

   Inside these compounds the two readings blur, since an ad campaign is both a stretch of advertising and a set of ads, and nothing hangs on telling them apart.

9. 9
   preposition

   Used to mean to or toward, borrowed from the Latin preposition with the same spelling.
10. 10
    noun

    Short for advertiser: a person or organization that uses advertisements to promote something.
11. 11
    noun

    Short for antidepressant: a medicine used to treat depression and some other conditions, such as anxiety.
12. 12
    noun

    Short for airworthiness directive: an official order from an aviation authority requiring action to correct an unsafe condition in aircraft, engines, propellers or equipment.
13. 13
    noun

    Short for adenovirus: any of a family of DNA viruses that cause colds and eye and gut infections, also used as carriers in gene therapy and vaccines.
14. 14
    noun

    Short for air defence or air defense: weapons, units and systems that protect against attack by aircraft, missiles or drones.
15. 15
    proper noun

    Short for Abu Dhabi: the capital of the United Arab Emirates, or the emirate of which it is the capital.
16. 16
    nounUS

    Initialism of auxiliary destroyer. In the US Navy, the hull classification symbol for a destroyer tender, a ship that supplies and repairs destroyers.
17. 17
    adjective

    Short for antidumping: describing duties or measures against imports sold below their price in the home market or below cost.
18. 18
    noun

    Initialism of after dark: on social media, an adult-only (18+) account run by a content creator.
19. 19
    noun

    In debating, short for advantage.