Do you know the definition of opt? This article will provide you with all of the information you need on the word opt, including its definition, etymology, usage, examples, and more!
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Kevin
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May 14, 2021
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What does the word opt mean?
According to Cambridge English Dictionary and Merriam-Webster Unabridged English Language Dictionary, the word opt (pronounced ɒpt) is an intransitive verb that means to make a choice, particularly one that is amongst other options. For example, if there is a set menu at a restaurant, one might opt for the salmon dish over the steak. The word opt is commonly used in tha phrases opt in and opt out. To opt into something is to sign up or allow something to happen. For example, if you sign up for a company’s email list to receive their coupons, you are opting in to receiving promotional emails. If you opt out of something, that means that you are choosing not to participate. For example, if someone does not want to be contacted by a representative from the CDC for contact tracing for the coronavirus, they would opt out. Try using examples of opt in a sentence today as your word of the day!
There are also many different languages that use words that mean opt. You may notice that many of these words look and sound similar to the word opt. This is likely because they are of a similar origin. Often words that look and sound the same and have a similar meaning, or that are cognates for each other have a similar origin, such as the romance languages and Latin. This list of translations for the word opt is provided by Word Sense.
- Italian: optare
- Swedish: välja
- Esperanto: elekti
- Russian: реша́ть, выбира́ть
- Romanian: opta
- Finnish: päättää, valita
- French: opter
- Portuguese: optar
- German: optieren
- Spanish: optar
OPT can also stand for many different acronyms. This list of potential meanings for the abbreviation OPT is provided by The Free Dictionary.
- Optimum
- Optimization and Profiling Tool
- Optional Practical Training
- Outdoor Payment Terminal
- Online Poker Tour
- Organization of Parents and Teachers
- Office of Pupil Transportation (New York, NY)
- Orthopedic Physical Therapy (various locations)
- Ocean Pout (FAO species name code )
- Oil Penetration Test
- Outreach Project Tool (groupware software)
- Office of Purchasing and Travel (various organizations)
- Outpatient Physical Therapy
- Opponent-Process Theory (psychology)
- Officer Physical Training
- Optimized Production Technology
- Office des Postes et Télécommunications de Nouvelle-Calédonie (Office of Mail and Telecommunications, New Caledonia)
- Opposite Track Path
- Ocean Power Technologies (UK & USA)
- Outreach Project Tool
- Optical
- Option
- Optical Power Transmitted
- Office of Pediatric Therapeutics (US FDA)
- Optimize Support File
- Organizational Planning Technique
- Options (File Name Extension)
- Operational Planning Team
- Optional
- Oxford Placement Test (language proficiency)
- Oji Paper Ltd. (Japan)
- Orthopantomogram
- Oil Pressure Transmitter
- Onstreet Parking & Trees
- Open Protocol Technology
- Open Packet Telephony
- Optional Modification
- Options Pricing Theory (finance)
- Overlegorgaan Post En Telecommunicatie (Dutch Consultative Committee Post and Telecommunication of the Ministry of V&W)
- Options Power Trader (newsletter)
- Overprint (philately)
- Open-Shell Perturbation Theory
- Output Transformer (electronics)
- Order Pool Time (workload)
- Other People’s Time
- Office de Promotion du Tourisme Wallonie-Bruxelles (Sint-Gillis, Belgium)
- Open Plug-In Technology
- Operations Planning Team
- Office of Telecommunications Policy
- Oceanside Photo and Telescope (Oceanside, CA)
- Onboard Performance Tool (Boeing)
- Occupied Palestinian Territory
- Original Point Therapy
- Off-Post Training (US Army)
- Optoelectronic Physics and Technology (IEEE conference)
- Ounces Per Tonne (mining)
- Offshore Pipeline Technology
- Organic Power Technologies Ltd (Victoria, BC, Canada)
- Optimization
- Operations Planning Tool
- Office des Postes et Télécommunications
What are synonyms and antonyms for the word opt?
There are many different words that can be used in place of the word opt. These are known as synonyms, which are words and phrases that have the same definition as other words and phrases. Synonyms are very useful to know because they can help you avoid repeating yourself as well as expanding your vocabulary. This list of synonyms for the word opt is provided by Thesaurus.
- make a selection
- take
- select
- go for
- prefer
- single out
- exercise choice
- decide
- cull
- pick
- choose
- elect
- mark
There are also numerous different words that mean the opposite of the word opt. These are called antonyms. Antonyms are also very useful to know if you want to expand your vocabulary as well as your knowledge of the English language. This list of synonyms for the word opt is also provided by Thesaurus.
- cast aside
- dismiss
- deny
- scorn
- discard
- slough
- despise
- put down
- discount
- jettison
- shed
- scrap
- repudiate
- decline
- eliminate
- chuck
- rebuff
- turn down
- burn
- veto
- reprobate
- repel
- discredit
- pass up
- cast off
- reject
- pass on
- shun
- renounce
- cast out
- nix
- exclude
- spurn
- refuse
- disdain
- disallow
- repulse
- jilt
- scoff
- shoot down
- pass by
- second
- give thumbs down to
- kill
- scout
- throw out
- not buy
- cashier
- throw away
- disbelieve
What is the origin of the word opt?
According to Etymonline, the word opt has been used since the year 1877 as a verb that means to wish for, choose or desire. This comes from the French opter meaning to choose, which has been used since the 16th century. The French opter comes from the Latin optare meaning to choose or desire. Before the word opt was popularized, people used the word optate around the 1610s. This word came from the Latin optatus. The phrases opt out and opt in were used beginning in the 1920s. Related words to the word opt include the past tense verb opted, the present tense opting, and the noun option. Other words that we get form the same root include optician and optative.
Overall, the word opt is an intransitive verb that refers to a choice or decision that is being made, particularly of one thing amongst many options. OPT is also an acronym that stands for many different possible definitions.
Sources:
- https://www.thesaurus.com/browse/opt
- https://www.thesaurus.com/browse/reject
- https://www.wordsense.eu/opt/
- https://www.etymonline.com/word/opt#etymonline_v_7091
- https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/opt
- https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/opt
- https://acronyms.thefreedictionary.com/opt
