# link

Pronunciation: say "LINGK" /lɪŋk/

## Verb

1. To connect two or more things to each other.
   - Simple: To join two or more things together.
   - _A new treaty will link the two nations in a trade alliance._
   - _The software linked thousands of devices into one network._
4. To show that a relationship or correlation exists between two things.
   - Simple: To show that two things are related to each other.
   - _Researchers link the gene to a higher risk of disease._
   - _Several studies have linked stress to heart problems._
5. To provide a hyperlink to something, as in a post, web page, or message, or to direct someone to it by a link.
   - Simple: To add or send a web link that leads to something.
   - _She linked the press release on her social media._
   - _Several users link the same study whenever this topic comes up._
10. To meet with someone, typically to spend time together or connect socially. *(slang)*
   - Simple: To meet up with someone, often to hang out or spend time together.
   - _Let's link the others once they finish work._
   - _He linked his old teammates at the reunion._
12. To move along quickly and smartly, skipping or tripping lightly as one goes. *(dialectal, Scotland)*
   - Simple: To move along quickly with light, skipping steps.

## Noun

2. Short for hyperlink: words or a picture you click or tap to reach a page, file, or part of a document. — Abbreviation of hyperlink.
   - Simple: Abbreviation of hyperlink. It's the clickable text or picture you tap to jump to another web page.
   - _The email contained a broken link that led nowhere._
   - _He copied the link and pasted it into the chat._
3. A connection joining places, people, events, things, or ideas.
   - Simple: A connection between people, places, things, or ideas.
   - _Researchers found a link between the two historical events._
   - _The bridge provides a vital link between the island and the mainland._
7. A ring or loop, especially one of the pieces joined together to form a chain.
   - Simple: One of the rings or loops that join together to make a chain.
   - _The jeweler replaced a tiny link in the bracelet._
   - _A weak link snapped under the heavy load._
6. A connection between two buses or systems that allows them to communicate or transfer data.
   - Simple: A connection that lets two computer systems or parts send data to each other.
   - _Engineers tested the link between the two systems for errors._
   - _The wireless link lets the sensor send readings to the hub._
8. A sausage made in a tube shape rather than a flat patty.
   - Simple: A sausage shaped like a tube, not a flat patty.
   - _She grilled several links alongside the burgers._
   - _A single link of breakfast sausage sat on the plate._
9. A single person or element considered as one part of a larger connected system.
   - Simple: A single person or part within a larger system.
   - _Each volunteer is a vital link in the relief effort._
   - _A single faulty link in the process delayed the entire shipment._
11. A rod or other part of a mechanism that connects other parts and transmits or constrains their motion.
   - Simple: A part of a machine that joins other parts and passes movement between them.
   - _The engineer adjusted the link to change how the valve moved._
   - _Each link transmits force between the eccentric rods and the valve._

## Noun

13. A torch carried to give light in dark streets, used before modern street lighting existed. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: A burning torch once carried to light up dark streets at night.

## Other meanings

- (verb) To combine the object files produced by a compiler into a single runnable program.
- (noun) A unit of valence between atoms: a single bond of chemical affinity or attraction joining them.
- (noun) A surveying unit of length equal to one hundredth of Gunter's chain, or 7.92 inches, the full chain measuring 66 feet.
- (noun) In topology, a space made up of one or more disjoint knots considered together.
- (noun) A short introductory cue used to lead into the next segment of a broadcast.
- (noun) A winding of a river, or the stretch of land lying along a curving stream.
- (noun) A thin strip of wild land that separates two cultivated patches and often connects two hills.

## Origin

**Meanings 1–11** — From Middle English linke, lenke, a merger of Old English hlenċe ("ring; chainlink") and Old Norse hlekkr ("ring; chain"), both from Proto-Germanic *hlankiz ("ring; bond; fetter"). It has been used in English since the 14th century and is related to lank.
**Meaning 13** — Ancient Greek λύχνος (lúkhnos, "lamp") gave Latin lynchinus, which was altered to Medieval Latin linchinus ("candle"). The English word is plausibly a modified form of that.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/link (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).