lect
LatinVariants
Related Roots
About This Root
From Latin legere (to choose, read, gather), past participle lectum. The triple meaning — choose, read, gather — produces three word families: choosing (elect, select, election), gathering (collect, collection), and reading (lecture, legible, legend). Prefixes create nuance: se- (apart) in select, col- (together) in collect, e- (out) in elect.
Associated Words
allege
To claim something is true without full proof
artificial-intelligence
The simulation of human intelligence by computers
collect
To gather things together; to accumulate items as a hobby
collectable
Worthy of collecting; an object worth collecting
collected
Gathered together; calm and in control of one's emotions
collectible
Worthy of collecting; an object worth collecting
collection
A group of items gathered together; the act of collecting
collective
Done by or belonging to a group together; a jointly owned enterprise
collectively
As a group; together as a whole
collectivism
The principle that group interests take priority over individual ones
collectivist
A supporter of collectivism; relating to collectivism
collectivistic
Of or relating to collectivism
collectivity
The state of being collective; a group considered as a whole
collectivization
The process of organizing farms or industries under collective control
collectivize
To organize under collective or state ownership
college
A corporate group; a group of colleagues
colleges
Institutions of higher education offering degrees or training
counterintelligence
Activities to detect and prevent enemy espionage and sabotage; 反情报,反间谍活动
data-collection
The systematic gathering of information for research or analysis
delectation
Great pleasure or delight
delegate
A representative of others; to assign tasks or authority to someone
delegation
A group of representatives; the act of delegating authority
delegator
A person who delegates tasks or authority
democratically-elected
Chosen through a democratic voting process
deselect
To cancel or remove a selection
dialect
A regional or social variety of a language
dialectal
Relating to or characteristic of a dialect
diligence
Steady, careful hard work and perseverance; 勤奋,勤勉
diligent
Hard-working and persistent; 勤勉的,用功的
eclectic
Drawing from diverse sources or styles; a person who does so
eclecticism
The practice of drawing from diverse sources or doctrines
elect
To choose by voting; elected but not yet in office
electable
Capable of winning an election
election
a formal vote to choose a political representative
election-year
A year in which a major election takes place
elective
Relating to elections; freely chosen; an optional course
elector
A person who has the right to vote in an election
electoral
Relating to elections or voters
electorate
All people entitled to vote in an election
elegance
Grace and refinement in appearance or style; clever simplicity
elegant
Graceful and refined in appearance or style
elegantly
In a graceful and stylish manner
elicit
To draw out or provoke a response or information from someone
eligible
Meeting the necessary conditions to qualify for something
elite
A select group of the best or most powerful people; of the highest quality
extralegal
Outside the scope or control of the law
general-election
A national election open to all voters
illegal
Contrary to or forbidden by law or rules
illegalize
To make something illegal by law
illegally
In a way that is against the law
illegitimacy
The state of being illegal or born to unmarried parents
illegitimate
Not lawful or authorized; born to unmarried parents
illegitimately
In an unlawful or unauthorized manner
inelegance
Lack of grace or refinement
inelegant
Lacking grace or refinement
inelegantly
In a graceless or unrefined manner
ineligible
Not qualified or permitted; failing to meet required conditions
intellect
The ability to think and reason; a highly intelligent person
intellectual
Relating to the mind and intellect; a learned, thoughtful person
intellectually
In a way that relates to the intellect or mental reasoning
intelligence
The ability to learn and understand; secret information about an enemy
intelligent
Having a high mental capacity; quick to learn and understand
intelligently
In a clever and rational manner
intelligentsia
The educated intellectual elite of a society
intelligible
Able to be understood; expressed clearly
intelligibly
In a clear and understandable manner
lectern
A stand with a slanted top for holding a speaker's notes or a book
lecture
A formal spoken lesson; to teach or scold by speaking at length
lecturer
A person who gives lectures, especially at a university
lectureship
The position of a lecturer at a university
legacy
Money or property left in a will; something inherited from the past
legal
relating to the law; permitted by law
legalistic
Strictly adhering to the letter of the law
legalization
The process of making something legally permitted
legalize
To make something permitted or lawful
legally
In a manner permitted by law
legend
A traditional story involving heroic or supernatural elements; a very famous person
legendary
Relating to legend; extremely famous or remarkable
legendry
A collection of legends or traditional stories
legible
Clear and easy to read
legion
A large Roman army unit; a vast number of people or things
legislate
To make or pass laws
legislation
Laws enacted by a legislature; the process of making laws
legislative
Relating to making laws; the law-making branch of government
legislatively
By means of legislation
legislator
A person who makes laws, especially a member of a legislature
legislature
A governmental body with the power to make and repeal laws
legitimate
Lawful and valid; conforming to accepted standards; to make lawful
legitimately
In a lawful or justifiable manner
legitimization
The process of making something lawful or accepted
legitimize
To make something lawful or acceptable
legume
A plant of the pea or bean family, or its edible seed or pod
long-neglected
Ignored or overlooked for a long time
neglect
To fail to care for or attend to something; lack of proper care
neglected
Not given proper care or attention
neglectful
Failing to give proper care or attention
negligence
Failure to take proper care; careless lack of responsibility
negligent
Failing to take proper care; careless
negligently
In a careless or inattentive manner
negligible
Too small or unimportant to be worth considering
newly-elected
Recently chosen by vote; newly-elected
non-elected
Not chosen through a public election
non-selective
Not based on selective criteria
post-election
Occurring or relating to the period after an election
pre-selected
Chosen in advance before a formal selection
predilection
A strong natural preference or liking for something
privilege
A special right or advantage not enjoyed by all; to grant such a right
privileged
Having special advantages or rights not available to everyone
re-elect
To elect again to the same position; 重新选举,改选
re-election
Election to the same position for another term; 再次当选,改选
recollect
To recall or remember something from the past
recollected
Remembered or recalled from memory
recollection
The act of remembering; something recalled from the past
sacrilegious
Showing disrespect toward something sacred
select
To choose from a group; of high quality or carefully chosen
selected
Carefully chosen from a group
selectee
A person who has been selected or drafted
selection
The act of choosing; a range of options to choose from
selective
Carefully choosing only certain things; not applying to all
selectively
In a selective manner, applying only to chosen cases
selectivity
The quality or degree of being selective
selector
A person or device that selects among options
self-selected
Chosen by oneself rather than by an external process
self-selection
The process of choosing oneself or something for oneself
uncollectible
Not able to be collected or recovered; a bad debt that cannot be recovered
unelected
Not chosen through an election
unintelligent
Lacking intelligence or mental ability
unintelligibly
In a way that is impossible to understand
unselected
Not chosen or selected