# optical

Pronunciation: say "OP-ti-kuhl" US /ˈɑptɪkəl/, UK /ˈɒptɪkəl/

## Adjective

1. Relating to sight or to the sense of vision.
   - Simple: Having to do with seeing or with the eyes.
   - _An optical illusion can trick the brain into seeing motion that isn't really there._
   - _The brain interprets optical input from the retina to build a picture of the world._
2. Designed to assist or improve a person's eyesight.
   - Simple: Made to help people see better.
   - _The pharmacy added an optical department selling glasses and contact lenses._
   - _She was fitted with optical lenses designed to correct her blurry vision._
3. Relating to optics, the branch of physics concerned with light and vision.
   - Simple: Having to do with the study of light and how it behaves.
   - _The optical properties of the new glass greatly reduced glare._
   - _Researchers presented their work on optical phenomena at the physics conference._
4. Relating to the visible part of the light spectrum.
   - Simple: Having to do with light that people can see.
   - _Optical telescopes gather visible light from distant galaxies._
   - _The satellite carries both optical and infrared cameras._
5. Built with devices that detect or respond to light.
   - Simple: Using parts that work by sensing light.
   - _An optical mouse detects motion with a tiny light sensor._
   - _The drive reads data from discs using an optical pickup._

## Noun

6. A special effect created by processing the film in a laboratory rather than capturing it in the camera.
   - Simple: A movie effect that is added by working on the film in a lab.
   - _The editor ordered an optical to dissolve smoothly between the two shots._
   - _Before computers, every optical had to be created by hand in a film lab._

## Origin

Formed from "optic" combined with the suffix "-al".

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