What does "indirect" mean?
An indirect cost.
Indirect
/ˌɪndaɪˈɹɛkt/ adj, noun, verb
adj, noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: An indirect cost.
- Grammar: indirect is listed as adj, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: aberrant, aberrative, accessory, accidental.
- Useful contrasts: direct, assertive, direct action.
- Usage evidence: New indirect taxes were imposed on spirits.
How to use "indirect"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "indirect" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "indirect" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "indirect" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "indirect" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "indirect" is acting as adj, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "aberrant" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "indirect", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 An indirect cost.
"In the case of a piece of equipment such as a pump, the supplier's costs may be broken down into the directs of labour, material, and component costs on the one hand, and the indirects of customized engineering, sales, factory overheads, and order management costs on the other."
- 2 An indirect radiator.
"Indirect radiators are seldom installed except for rooms on the first or second floors; and in the former case the duct, D, is very short, and in the latter it is usually from 12 to 16 feet long. It should be stated in this connection that indirects of large size should be spread out as much as possible so as to give a large area against the current of air."
Verb
- 1 To access by means of indirection; to dereference. transitive
"The X operations access the data fields by indirecting through the _rep pointer."
Adjective
- 1 Not direct
"While not mentioning any of their competitors by name, the CEO made some indirect statements that they were acting immorally."
- 2 Not direct:; Not of obvious or immediate cause, but as a secondary result.
"The direct result of socialising every day in the bars may be happiness and meeting new people, but the indirect results could be addiction, or even poverty."
- 3 Not direct:; Not focused straight at the target or subject; whose true aim appears secondary or obscure.
- 4 Not direct:; Not involving the quickest, shortest, or most convenient path; oblique.
"In an effort to beat the traffic jams, they opted to take an indirect route to their destination."
- 5 Not direct:; Employing argument by contradiction; making use the law of the excluded middle; arguing via the contrapositive.
Show 2 more definitions
- 6 Figuratively
- 7 Figuratively; Not straightforward, fair, or honest; corrupt. archaic
"Did you, by indirect, and forced courſes / Subdue, and poyſon this tong Maides affections? / Or came it by requeſt, and ſuch faire queſtion / As ſoule, to ſoule affordeth?"
Adjective
- 1 not direct in spatial dimension; not leading by a straight line or course to a destination wordnet
- 2 extended senses; not direct in manner or language or behavior or action wordnet
- 3 having intervening factors or persons or influences wordnet
- 4 descended from a common ancestor but through different lines wordnet
- 5 not as a direct effect or consequence wordnet
Example
"New indirect taxes were imposed on spirits."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "indirect"?
Common synonyms include: aberrant, aberrative, accessory, accidental, additional, adscititious.
How do you use "indirect" in a sentence?
New indirect taxes were imposed on spirits.
How do you pronounce "indirect"?
Pronounced /ˌɪndaɪˈɹɛkt/.
Etymology
From Middle French indirect, from Late Latin indirectus (“not direct”).