Definition of "element"

element

/ˈɛləmənt/

noun
plural elements
1. One of the simplest or essential parts or principles of which anything consists, or upon which the constitution or fundamental powers of anything are based.
  Quotations
  The simplicity which is so large an element in a noble nature was laughed to scorn.
  1881, Benjamin Jowett, Thucydides
  1. (chemistry) Any one of the simplest chemical substances that cannot be decomposed in a chemical reaction or by any chemical means and made up of atoms all having the same number of protons.
  2. One of the four basic building blocks of matter in theories of ancient philosophers and alchemists: water, earth, fire, and air.
  3. (usually in the plural) A basic, simple substance out of which something is made, raw material.
    Quotations
    Thus ſhall my heart be ſtil combinde with thine,Untill our bodies turne to Elements:And both our ſoules aſpire celeſtiall thrones.
    c. 1587–1588, [Christopher Marlowe], Tamburlaine the Great. […] The First Part […], 2nd edition, part 1, London: […] [R. Robinson for] Richard Iones, […], published 1592; reprinted as Tamburlaine the Great (A Scolar Press Facsimile), Menston, Yorkshire, London: Scolar Press, 1973, (please specify the page)
  4. (law) A required aspect or component of a cause of action. A deed is regarded as a violation of law only if each element can be proved.
  5. (set theory) One of the objects in a set.
  6. (mathematics) One of the entries of a matrix.
  7. Any of the teeth of a zip fastener.
2. A small part of the whole.
3. A small but present amount of a quality, a hint.
  Quotations
  The case was that of a murder. It had an element of mystery about it, however, which was puzzling the authorities. A turban and loincloth soaked in blood had been found; also a staff.
  1927, F. E. Penny, chapter 4, in Pulling the Strings
4. A factor, one of the conditions contributing to a result.
5. (obsolete) The sky.
  Quotations
  Sometimes, solitude is of all things my wish; and the awful silence of the night, the spangled element, and the rising and setting sun, how promotive of contemplation!
  1748, [Samuel Richardson], “Letter LXIX”, in Clarissa. Or, The History of a Young Lady: […], volumes (please specify |volume=I to VII), London: […] S[amuel] Richardson; […]
6. (obsolete) Any one of the heavenly spheres believed to carry the celestial bodies.
7. (in the plural only, with "the") Atmospheric forces such as strong winds and rains.
8. A place or state of being that an individual or object is best suited to.
9. (Christianity, usually in the plural) The bread and wine taken at Holy Communion.
10. A group of people within a larger group having a particular common characteristic.
11. (in the plural only) The basic principles of a field of knowledge, basics, fundamentals, rudiments.
12. A component in electrical equipment, often in the form of a coil, having a high resistance, thereby generating heat when a current is passed through it.
13. (mathematics) An infinitesimal interval of a quantity, a differential.
14. (astronomy) An orbital element; one of the parameters needed to uniquely specify a particular orbit.
15. (computing) One of the conceptual objects in a markup language, usually represented in text by tags.
  Quotations
  The div element was introduced into HTML as a solution to the layout problem.
  2011, Richard Wagner, Creating Web Pages All-in-One For Dummies
verb
third-person singular simple present elements, present participle elementing, simple past and past participle elemented
1. (obsolete) To compound of elements.
  Quotations
  those things which elemented [love]
  1633, John Donne, A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning
  elemented bodies
  1661, Robert Boyle, The Sceptical Chymist
  thou art elemented and organed
  1681, Maunyngham, Disc., page 89
2. (obsolete) To constitute and be the elements of.
  Quotations
  His very soul was elemented of nothing but sadness.
  1658, Izaak Walton, Life of Donne