Influence

6 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Influence \In"flu*ence\ ([i^]n"fl[-u]*ens), n. [F. influence,
     fr. L. influens, -entis, p. pr. See {Influent}, and cf.
     {Influenza}.]
     1. A flowing in or upon; influx. [Obs.]
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              God hath his influence into the very essence of all
              things.                               --Hooker.
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     2. Hence, in general, the bringing about of an effect,
        physical or moral, by a gradual process; controlling power
        quietly exerted; agency, force, or tendency of any kind
        which affects, modifies, or sways; as, the influence which
        the sun exerts on animal and vegetable life; the influence
        of education on the mind; the influence, according to
        astrologers, of the stars over affairs.
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              Astrologers call the evil influences of the stars,
              evil aspects.                         --Bacon.
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              Canst thou bind the sweet influences of Pleiades, or
              loose the bands of Orion?             --Job xxxviii.
                                                    31.
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              She said : "Ah, dearest lord! what evil star
              On you hath frown'd, and poured, his influence bad?"
                                                    --Spenser.
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     3. Power or authority arising from elevated station,
        excelence of character or intellect, wealth, etc.;
        reputation; acknowledged ascendency; as, he is a man of
        influence in the community.
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              Such influence hath your excellency.  --Sir P.
                                                    Sidney.
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     4. (Elec.) Induction.
  
     Syn: Control; persuasion; ascendency; sway; power; authority;
          supremacy; mastery; management; restraint; character;
          reputation; prestige.
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From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Influence \In"flu*ence\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Influenced}
     ([i^]n"fl[-u]*enst); p. pr. & vb. n. {Influencing}
     ([i^]n"fl[-u]*en*s[i^]ng).]
     To control or move by power, physical or moral; to affect by
     gentle action; to exert an influence upon; to modify, bias,
     or sway; to affect; to move; to persuade; to induce.
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           These experiments succeed after the same manner in
           vacuo as in the open air, and therefore are not
           influenced by the weight or pressure of the atmosphere.
                                                    --Sir I.
                                                    Newton.
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           This standing revelation . . . is sufficient to
           influence their faith and practice, if they attend.
                                                    --Attebury.
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           The principle which influenced their obedience has lost
           its efficacy.                            --Rogers.
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From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  influence
       n 1: a power to affect persons or events especially power based
            on prestige etc; "used her parents' influence to get the
            job"
       2: causing something without any direct or apparent effort
       3: a cognitive factor that tends to have an effect on what you
          do; "her wishes had a great influence on his thinking"
       4: the effect of one thing (or person) on another; "the
          influence of mechanical action"
       5: one having power to influence another; "she was the most
          important influence in my life"; "he was a bad influence
          on the children"
       v 1: have and exert influence or effect; "The artist's work
            influenced the young painter"; "She worked on her
            friends to support the political candidate" [syn: {act
            upon}, {work}]
       2: shape or influence; give direction to; "experience often
          determines ability"; "mold public opinion" [syn: {determine},
           {shape}, {mold}, {regulate}]
       3: induce into action by using one's charm; "She charmed him
          into giving her all his money" [syn: {charm}, {tempt}]

From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:

  250 Moby Thesaurus words for "influence":
     Rasputin, Svengali, VIP, access, acme, act on, act upon, actuation,
     advance, affect, alter, amperage, animation, armipotence,
     ascendancy, authority, authorization, bad influence,
     be-all and end-all, beef, behind-the-scenes influence, bend, bias,
     big wheel, black power, blue ribbon, bring, brute force, carry,
     championship, change, charge, charisma, clout, cogence, cogency,
     color, command, compulsion, concentrate on, conduce to,
     connections, consequence, contribute to, control, court, credit,
     decide, determine, devices, dint, direction, directorship, dispose,
     distort, dominance, domination, dominion, drag, drive, duress,
     effect, effectiveness, effectuality, eminence, eminence grise,
     energy, engage, enlist, expedients, favor, favoritism, first place,
     first prize, five-percenter, flower power, focus on, force,
     force majeure, forcefulness, forward, friend at court, full blast,
     full force, get, get to do, good influence, gray eminence,
     greatness, headship, heavyweight, hegemony, height, hidden hand,
     highest, hold, impact, imperium, importance, impress, impress upon,
     in, incline, induce, influence peddler, influencer,
     influentialness, ingroup, inner-direction, inspire, interest in,
     jaundice, jurisdiction, key, kingmaker, kingship, lead, lead to,
     leadership, leverage, lobby, lobbyist, lords of creation, lordship,
     lure, machination, main force, main strength, man of influence,
     mana, management, maneuvering, maneuvers, manipulate, manipulation,
     manipulator, mastership, mastery, maximum, might, might and main,
     mightiness, modify, moment, most, motivate, motivation, move,
     moving, moxie, muscle power, ne plus ultra, new high, open sesame,
     operate on, other-direction, palms, paramountcy, persuade, pizzazz,
     political influence, poop, potence, potency, potentiality, power,
     power pack, power structure, power struggle, powerfulness,
     powers that be, precedence, predispose, predominance, prejudice,
     prejudice against, prejudice the issue, prepossess, prepotency,
     presidency, pressure, pressure group, prestige, primacy, priority,
     procure, productiveness, productivity, prominence, prompt,
     prompting, puissance, pull, punch, push, rank, record, redound to,
     rule, say, seniority, sinew, sinister influence, soften up,
     sovereignty, special interests, special-interest group, stature,
     steam, stimulation, strength, strike, strong arm, subserve,
     superiority, superpower, supremacy, sway, tactical maneuvers,
     tactics, tempt, the Establishment, tinge, tone, top spot, touch,
     treat, turn the scale, twist, validity, vehemence,
     very important person, vigor, vim, virility, virtue, virulence,
     vitality, warp, wattage, wear down, weigh with, weight,
     weightiness, wheeler-dealer, wire-puller, wire-pulling, work,
     work on, zenith
  
  

From Bouvier's Law Dictionary, Revised 6th Ed (1856) [bouvier]:

  INFLUENCE. Authority, credit, ascendance. 
       2. Influence is proper or improper. Proper influence is that which one 
  person gains over another by acts of kindness and, attention, and by correct 
  conduct. 3 Serg. & Rawle, 269. Improper influence is that dominion acquired 
  by any person over a mind of sanity for general purposes, and of sufficient 
  soundness and discretion to regulate his affairs in general, which prevents 
  the exercise of his discretion, and destroys his free will. 1 Cox's Cas. 
  355. When the former is used to induce a testator to make a will, it will 
  not vitiate it; but when the latter is the moving cause, the will cannot 
  stand. 1 Hagg. R. 581; 2 Hagg. 142; 5 Serg. & Rawle, 207; 13 Serg. & Rawle, 
  323; 4 Greenl. R. 220; 1 Paige, R. 171; 1 Dow. & Cl. 440; 1 Speers, 93. 
       3. A contract to use a party's influence to induce a person in 
  authority to exercise his power in a particular way, is void, as being 
  against public policy. 5 Watts & Serg. 315; 5 Penn. St. Rep. 452; 7 Watts, 
  152. 
  
  

From THE DEVIL'S DICTIONARY ((C)1911 Released April 15 1993) [devils]:

  INFLUENCE, n.  In politics, a visionary _quo_ given in exchange for a
  substantial _quid_.