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   element

   /ˈɛlɪm(ə)nt/

   noun

   • 1. an essential or characteristic part of something abstract: "the death had all the elements of a great tabloid story" Similar componentconstituentpartsectionportionpiecesegmentbitfactorfeaturefacetingredientstranddetailpointmemberunitmoduleitemessentialrare:integrand
   • ▪ a small but significant amount of a feeling or quality: "it was the element of danger he loved in flying" Similar tracetouchhintsmatteringsuspicionsoupçon
   • ▪ the rudiments of a subject: "legal training may include the elements of economics and political science" Similar basicsessentialsprinciplesfirst principlesfoundationsfundamentalsrudimentsinformal:nuts and boltsABC
   • ▪ a group of people of a particular kind within a larger group: "the younger elements in the party are opposed to the move"
   • ▪ (in church use) the bread and wine of the Eucharist.
   • ▪ an entity that is a single member of a set.
   • 2. each of more than one hundred substances that cannot be chemically interconverted or broken down into simpler substances and are primary constituents of matter. Each element is distinguished by its atomic number, i.e. the number of protons in the nuclei of its atoms.
   • ▪ any of the four substances (earth, water, air, and fire) regarded as the fundamental constituents of the world in ancient and medieval philosophy.
   • ▪ a person's or animal's natural or preferred environment: "he was raised in Hawaii and the sea is his natural element" Similar natural environmentfavoured environmentfamiliar territoryterritoryhabitatmediummilieuspherefielddomainrealmcircleresorthaunt
   • 3. strong winds, heavy rain, or other kinds of bad weather: "there was no barrier against the elements" Similar the weatherthe climatemeteorological conditionsatmospheric conditions/forcesthe windthe rainstorms
   • 4. a part in an electric kettle, heater, or cooker which contains a wire through which an electric current is passed to provide heat.

   Word Origin Middle English (denoting fundamental constituents of the world or celestial objects): via Old French from Latin elementum ‘principle, rudiment’, translating Greek stoikheion ‘step, component part’.

   Scrabble Points: 9

   • E

     1

   • L

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   • E

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   • M

     3

   • E

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   • N

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   • T

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