What is the dial: the meaning of the word

At first it seems that the answer is simpler than a parrot turnip, and even a five-year-old child knows what the dial is. He would say that this is a circle on the clock, on which the arrow is moving, pointing to time. This is true, but the dial is not only for chronometers.

Etymology

The word is borrowed and comes from the German Zifferblatt. It consists of two words - Ziffer (number, number) and Blatt (sheet). This lexeme came to Russian in the second half of the 19th century. Here it is already written without doubling the consonants in the basis of the word. Also in the nominative case the word consists of two morphemes - the "dial" root and the zero ending.

What is the dial: definition

The dial is the device's panel for counting something. This may apply to both mechanical and electronic devices. If we talk about the dial of the clock, it is designed to visually display the time being counted. In other words, it helps to navigate in what time it is.

This word is also used in relation to such measuring devices as barometer, manometer, tonometer, etc.

What is the dial and what does it consist of?

Any dial of a mechanical or quartz watch assumes the presence of one or more arrows, and they are not needed electronically, there are only numbers. At the moment, designers have developed hundreds of models. Therefore, they can not only fulfill their functional role, but also be distinctive elements of the interior. According to the type of construction, the dial is divided into a wall, floor, table, fireplace, pocket, wristwatch. This affects the dimensions (for example, the famous chimes have a diameter of 6 m, and the wristwatch can be less than 1 cm).

Another difference is how the figures are represented. They can be performed in Arabic and Roman or even replaced with chopsticks or dots. Sometimes only the main ones are designated (3, 6, 9, 12), which divide the hour into four quarters. For a more accurate definition of time, dials with 60 divisions (most often in the form of dots) are issued, which show seconds.

Fans of minimalism like such models where there are no divisions at all, but in order to understand what time it is, one must be guided by the position of the arrows and remember that there are 12 on top and 6 on the bottom.

Electronic watches are less diverse: as a rule, only 4 figures are displayed on the screen, for example, 17:45.

If we talk about the dial of the barometer, then, in addition to numbers, there may also be words ("clear", "dry", "rain"), which are accompanied by pictures. They transmit the necessary information about the state of atmospheric pressure in a simple and understandable form.

Synonyms

The word "clock" is used in a wide sense. Sometimes you can meet nouns "screen", "display", but everything depends on the context. If to generalize, then the dial is mainly associated with the image of numbers. And the above words can relate to the computer monitor, tablet, and other devices, which is shown not only by numerical values.

And what is the "dial" in figurative meaning? In the ironic sense, this word is used in place of the nouns "face", "physiognomy".

Knowing such subtleties will help to expand lexical stock and become more savvy in the correct use of words.