interest (n.)

  1. a sense of concern with and curiosity about someone or something; an interest in music

    [ Syn: involvement ]

  2. a reason for wanting something done; for your sake; died for the sake of his country; in the interest of safety; in the common interest

    [ Syn: sake ]

  3. the power of attracting or holding ones attention (because it is unusual or exciting etc.); they said nothing of great interest; primary colors can add interest to a room

    [ Syn: interestingness ]

  4. a fixed charge for borrowing money; usually a percentage of the amount borrowed; how much interest do you pay on your mortgage?'

  5. (law) a right or legal share of something; a financial involvement with something; they have interests all over the world; a stake in the companys future

    [ Syn: stake ]

  6. (usually plural) a social group whose members control some field of activity and who have common aims; the iron interests stepped up production

    [ Syn: interest group ]

  7. a diversion that occupies ones time and thoughts (usually pleasantly); sailing is her favorite pastime; his main pastime is gambling; he counts reading among his interests; they criticized the boy for his limited pursuits

    [ Syn: pastime , pursuit ]

    interest (v.)

  1. excite the curiosity of; engage the interest of

  2. be on the mind of; I worry about the second Germanic consonant shift

    [ Syn: concern , occupy , worry ]

  3. be of importance or consequence; This matters to me!

    [ Syn: matter to ]

The dictionary is based on the WordNet Electronic Lexical Database.
WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2011 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.