On

7 definitions found

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

  On \On\ ([o^]n), prep. [OE. on, an, o, a, AS. on, an; akin to D.
     aan, OS. & G. an, OHG. ana, Icel. [=a], Sw. [*a], Goth. ana,
     Russ. na, L. an-, in anhelare to pant, Gr. 'ana`, Zend ana.
     [root]195. Cf. {A-}, 1, {Ana-}, {Anon}.]
     The general signification of on is situation, motion, or
     condition with respect to contact or support beneath; as: 


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     1. At, or in contact with, the surface or upper part of a
        thing, and supported by it; placed or lying in contact
        with the surface; as, the book lies on the table, which
        stands on the floor of a house on an island.
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              I stood on the bridge at midnight.    --Longfellow.
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     2. To or against the surface of; -- used to indicate the
        motion of a thing as coming or falling to the surface of
        another; as, rain falls on the earth.
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              Whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken.
                                                    --Matt. xxi.
                                                    44.
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     3. Denoting performance or action by contact with the
        surface, upper part, or outside of anything; hence, by
        means of; with; as, to play on a violin or piano. Hence,
        figuratively, to work on one's feelings; to make an
        impression on the mind.
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     4. At or near; adjacent to; -- indicating situation, place,
        or position; as, on the one hand, on the other hand; the
        fleet is on the American coast.
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     5. In addition to; besides; -- indicating multiplication or
        succession in a series; as, heaps on heaps; mischief on
        mischief; loss on loss; thought on thought. --Shak.
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     6. Indicating dependence or reliance; with confidence in; as,
        to depend on a person for assistance; to rely on; hence,
        indicating the ground or support of anything; as, he will
        promise on certain conditions; to bet on a horse; based on
        certain assumptions.
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     7. At or in the time of; during; as, on Sunday we abstain
        from labor. See {At} (synonym).
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     8. At the time of; -- often conveying some notion of cause or
        motive; as, on public occasions, the officers appear in
        full dress or uniform; the shop is closed on Sundays.
        Hence, in consequence of, or following; as, on the
        ratification of the treaty, the armies were disbanded;
        start on the count of three.
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     9. Toward; for; -- indicating the object of some passion; as,
        have pity or compassion on him.
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     10. At the peril of, or for the safety of. "Hence, on thy
         life." --Dryden.
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     11. By virtue of; with the pledge of; -- denoting a pledge or
         engagement, and put before the thing pledged; as, he
         affirmed or promised on his word, or on his honor.
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     12. To the account of; -- denoting imprecation or invocation,
         or coming to, falling, or resting upon; as, on us be all
         the blame; a curse on him.
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               His blood be on us and on our children. --Matt.
                                                    xxvii. 25.
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     13. In reference or relation to; as, on our part expect
         punctuality; a satire on society.
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     14. Of. [Obs.] "Be not jealous on me." --Shak.
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               Or have we eaten on the insane root
               That takes the reason prisoner?      --Shak.
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     Note: Instances of this usage are common in our older
           writers, and are sometimes now heard in illiterate
           speech.
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     15. Occupied with; in the performance of; as, only three
         officers are on duty; on a journey; on the job; on an
         assignment; on a case; on the alert.
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     16. In the service of; connected with; a member of; as, he is
         on a newspaper; on a committee.
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     Note: On and upon are in general interchangeable. In some
           applications upon is more euphonious, and is therefore
           to be preferred; but in most cases on is preferable.
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     17. In reference to; about; concerning; as, to think on it;
         to meditate on it.
         [PJC]
  
     {On a bowline}. (Naut.) Same as {Closehauled}.
  
     {On a wind}, or {On the wind} (Naut.), sailing closehauled.
        
  
     {On a sudden}. See under {Sudden}.
  
     {On board}, {On draught}, {On fire}, etc. See under {Board},
        {Draught}, {Fire}, etc.
  
     {On it}, {On't}, of it. [Obs. or Colloq.] --Shak.
  
     {On shore}, on land; to the shore.
  
     {On the road}, {On the way}, {On the wing}, etc. See under
        {Road}, {Way}, etc.
  
     {On to}, upon; on; to; -- sometimes written as one word,
        onto, and usually called a colloquialism; but it may be
        regarded in analogy with into.
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              They have added the -en plural form on to an elder
              plural.                               --Earle.
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              We see the strength of the new movement in the new
              class of ecclesiastics whom it forced on to the
              stage.                                --J. R. Green.
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From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  On \On\, adv. [See {On}, prep.]
     1. Forward, in progression; onward; -- usually with a verb of
        motion; as, move on; go on; the beat goes on. "Time glides
        on." --Macaulay.
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              The path is smooth that leadeth on to danger.
                                                    --Shak.
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     2. Forward, in succession; as, from father to son, from the
        son to the grandson, and so on.
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     3. In continuance; without interruption or ceasing; as, sleep
        on, take your ease; say on; sing on.
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     4. Adhering; not off; as in the phrase, "He is neither on nor
        off," that is, he is not steady, he is irresolute.
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     5. Attached to the body, as clothing or ornament, or for use.
        "I have boots on." --B. Gonson.
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              He put on righteousness as a breastplate. --Is. lix.
                                                    17.
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     6. In progress; proceeding; ongoing; as, a game is on.
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     Note: On is sometimes used as an exclamation, or a command to
           move or proceed, some verb being understood; as, on,
           comrades; that is, go on, move on.
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     {On and on}, continuously; for a long time together. "Toiling
        on and on and on." --Longfellow.
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From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Rub \Rub\, v. i.
     1. To move along the surface of a body with pressure; to
        grate; as, a wheel rubs against the gatepost.
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     2. To fret; to chafe; as, to rub upon a sore.
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     3. To move or pass with difficulty; as, to rub through woods,
        as huntsmen; to rub through the world.
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     {To rub along} or {on}, to go on with difficulty; as, they
        manage, with strict economy, to rub along. [Colloq.]
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From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  on
       adj 1: in operation or operational; "left the oven on"; "the switch
              is in the on position" [ant: {off}]
       2: (of events) planned or scheduled; "the picnic is on, rain or
          shine"; "we have nothing on for Friday night" [ant: {off}]
       3: performing or scheduled for duties; "I'm on from five to
          midnight"; "Naval personnel on duty in Alaska"; "her
          on-duty hours were 11p.m. to 7 a.m." [syn: {on(p)}, {on
          duty(p)}, {on-duty(a)}]
       adv 1: with a forward motion; "we drove along admiring the view";
              "the horse trotted along at a steady pace"; "the
              circus traveled on to the next city"; "move along";
              "march on" [syn: {along}]
       2: indicates continuity or persistence or concentration; "his
          spirit lives on"; "shall I read on?"
       3: in a state required for something to function or be
          effective; "turn the lights on"; "get a load on"

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

  123 Moby Thesaurus words for "on":
     about, above, accidental, accompanying, across, ado, afloat, afoot,
     after which, against, ahead, along, among, anent, apropos of,
     as for, as regards, as respects, as to, astraddle, astride, at,
     atop, by, by dint of, by means of, by use of, by virtue of,
     by way of, circumstantial, concerning, current, doing, en route to,
     eventuating, for, forth, forward, forwards, from, going on,
     happening, headed for, hereby, hereinafter, herewith, horseback,
     in, in connection with, in contact with, in hand, in passage to,
     in point of, in re, in reference to, in regard to, in relation to,
     in relation with, in respect to, in the wind, in transit to,
     in virtue of, incidental, near, next to, occasional, occurring, of,
     on foot, on horseback, on route to, on top of, ongoing, onward,
     onwards, opposite, over, over against, passing, per, pertaining to,
     pertinent to, prevailing, prevalent, re, referring to, regarding,
     relating to, relative to, respecting, resultant, speaking of,
     straddle, straddle-legged, straddleback, taking place, thanks to,
     thereby, therewith, through, to, touching, toward, towards,
     under way, up, up against, upon, upon which, versus, vis-a-vis,
     whereat, whereby, wherefore, whereon, whereto, whereunto,
     whereupon, wherewith, wherewithal, with, with regard to,
     with respect to
  
  

From Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary [easton]:

  On
     light; the sun, (Gen. 41:45, 50), the great seat of sun-worship,
     called also Bethshemesh (Jer. 43:13) and Aven (Ezek. 30:17),
     stood on the east bank of the Nile, a few miles north of
     Memphis, and near Cairo, in the north-east. The Vulgate and the
     LXX. Versions have "Heliopolis" ("city of the sun") instead of
     On in Genesis and of Aven in Ezekiel. The "city of destruction"
     Isaiah speaks of (19:18, marg. "of Heres;" Heb. 'Ir-ha-heres,
     which some MSS. read Ir-ha-heres, i.e., "city of the sun") may
     be the name given to On, the prophecy being that the time will
     come when that city which was known as the "city of the sun-god"
     shall become the "city of destruction" of the sun-god, i.e.,
     when idolatry shall cease, and the worship of the true God be
     established.
     
       In ancient times this city was full of obelisks dedicated to
     the sun. Of these only one now remains standing. "Cleopatra's
     Needle" was one of those which stood in this city in front of
     the Temple of Tum, i.e., "the sun." It is now erected on the
     Thames Embankment, London.
     
       "It was at On that Joseph wooed and won the dark-skinned
     Asenath, the daughter of the high priest of its great temple."
     This was a noted university town, and here Moses gained his
     acquaintance with "all the wisdom of the Egyptians."
     

From Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary (late 1800's) [hitchcock]:

  On, pain; force; iniquity