projection

[ pruh-jek-shuhn ]

noun

1. a projecting or protruding part.

   Synonyms: jut, protrusion, overhang

2. the state or fact of jutting out or protruding.
3. a causing to jut or protrude.
4. the act, process, or result of projecting.
5. Also called map projection. Cartography. a systematic construction of lines drawn on a plane surface representative of and corresponding to the meridians and parallels of the curved surface of the earth or celestial sphere.
6. Photography.
   1. the act of reproducing on a surface, by optical means, a remote image on a film, slide, etc.
   2. an image so reproduced.
7. the act of visualizing and regarding an idea or the like as an objective reality.
8. something that is so visualized and regarded.
9. calculation of some future thing:

   They fell short of their projection for the rate of growth.

   Synonyms: extrapolation, forecast, prediction

10. the act of communicating distinctly and forcefully to an audience.
11. Psychology.
    1. the tendency to ascribe to another person feelings, thoughts, or attitudes present in oneself, or to regard external reality as embodying such feelings, thoughts, etc., in some way.
    2. Psychoanalysis. such an ascription relieving the ego of a sense of guilt or other intolerable feeling.
12. the act of planning or scheming.
13. Alchemy. the casting of the powder of philosophers' stone upon metal in fusion, to transmute it into gold or silver.

projection

/ prəˈdʒɛkʃən /

noun

1. the act of projecting or the state of being projected
2. an object or part that juts out
3. See map projection
4. the representation of a line, figure, or solid on a given plane as it would be seen from a particular direction or in accordance with an accepted set of rules
5. a scheme or plan
6. a prediction based on known evidence and observations
7. 1. the process of showing film on a screen
   2. the image or images shown
8. psychol
   1. the belief, esp in children, that others share one's subjective mental life
   2. the process of projecting one's own hidden desires and impulses See also defence mechanism
9. the mixing by alchemists of powdered philosopher's stone with molten base metals in order to transmute them into gold

projection

/ prə-jĕk′shən /

1. The image of a geometric figure reproduced on a line, plane, or surface.
2. A system of intersecting lines, such as the grid of a map, on which part or all of the globe or another spherical surface is represented as a plane surface.
3. See more at azimuthal projection

Derived Forms

• proˈjectional, adjective

Other Words From

• pro·jec·tion·al [pr, uh, -, jek, -sh, uh, -nl], adjective
• nonpro·jection noun
• self-pro·jection noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of projection¹

First recorded in 1470–80; from Latin prōjectiōn- (stem of prōjectiō ) “a throwing forward”; project, -ion

Example Sentences

“I have a son who has anxiety, so he would constantly be telling me about the projections of the future, and ‘What if?’

From Los Angeles Times

The researchers also observed that the projections of the nerve cells shorten upon HEV contact.

From Science Daily

There are also projections that Bennet has witnessed, such as questions about her dad’s masculinity.

From Los Angeles Times

Australia's Department of the Treasury has called those projections "doubtful" but has not released its own modelling on the economic impact of the changes.

From BBC

Scientists have observed the creature using a “finger-like projection” from its tail as a decoy.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• calculation
• estimate
• estimation
• forecast