function

Definitions

funct (perform, carry out a duty) + -ion (act, process) = 'a performing.' What a thing performs is its function (purpose); when something performs as intended, it functions (works). The mathematical sense (a function 'performs' an operation on an input) and the social sense (a function is an event where everyone performs a role) both grow from the same 'carrying out a duty' image.

Why It Means This

Function is unusual for how cleanly its senses radiate from one root idea. funct- means 'perform a duty,' so 'a function' is literally 'a performing.' From that single seed grow the purpose sense (what an organ or device performs), the verb (to perform/work), the math sense (an operation performed on a number), and the event sense (a gathering where each guest performs a social role). They feel unrelated until you see they all answer 'what is being carried out here?'

Common Collocations

• 1.perform a function发挥功能
• 2.serve a function起到作用
• 3.bodily functions身体机能
• 4.function properly正常运转
• 5.function as充当
• 6.key function关键功能

Example Sentences

• 1.

  The main function of the heart is to pump blood around the body.

• 2.

  After the update, the app stopped functioning on older phones.

• 3.

  She attended an official function at the embassy last night.

• 4.

  In this equation, y is a function of x.

• 5.

  The old table now functions as a desk in his study.

Synonym Comparison