case

noun26

1. •
   a particular situation, or the way things really are

   • For a change, in this case, he was telling the truth.
   • It is not the case that every unfamiliar phrase is an idiom.
2. •
   An instance or event as a topic of study.

   • The teaching consists of theory lessons and case studies.
3. •
   An instance of a specific condition or set of symptoms.

   • There were another five cases reported overnight.
4. •
   A specific matter or piece of work, specifically defined within a profession, usually in respect of a specific person and/or event; the set of tasks involved in addressing one such matter.

   • It was one of the detective's easiest cases.
   • Social workers should work on a maximum of forty active cases.
5. •
   A legal proceeding; a lawsuit or prosecution.
6. •
   A box that contains or can contain a number of identical items of manufacture or commerce.

   • When the ship reached Melbourne two days later we collared a couple of cases of apples from the hold and hid them in our bunks. — 1933
7. •
   A box, sheath, or covering generally.
8. •
   A piece of luggage that can be used to transport an apparatus such as a sewing machine.
9. •
   An enclosing frame or casing.
10. •
    A suitcase.
11. •
    A piece of furniture, constructed partially of transparent glass or plastic, within which items can be displayed.
12. •
    The outer covering or framework of a piece of apparatus such as a computer.
13. •
    A cardboard box that holds (usually 24) beer bottles or cans.
14. •
    abstract feature of a noun phrase that determines its function in a sentence, such as a grammatical case and a position.
15. •
    A specific inflection of a word (particularly a noun, pronoun, or adjective) depending on its function in the sentence.

    • The accusative case most commonly indicates a direct object.
    • Latin has six cases, and remnants of a seventh.
16. •
    Grammatical cases and their meanings taken either as a topic in general or within a specific language.

    • Jane has been studying case in Caucasian languages.
    • Latin is a language that employs case.
17. •
    The nature of a piece of alphabetic type, whether a “capital” (upper case) or “small” (lower case) letter.
18. •
    A section of code representing one of the actions of a conditional switch.

    • Place a break statement at the end of every case to prevent case fall-through. — 2004
19. •
    (historical) A shallow tray divided into compartments or “boxes” for holding type, traditionally arranged in sets of two, the “upper case” (containing capitals, small capitals, accented) and "lower case" (small letters, figures, punctuation marks, quadrats, and spaces).
20. •
    (US) A unit of liquid measure used to measure sales in the beverage industry, equivalent to 192 fluid ounces.
21. •
    A thin layer of harder metal on the surface of an object whose deeper metal is allowed to remain soft.
22. •
    (slang) Four of a kind.
23. •
    A small fissure which admits water into the workings.
24. •
    (no longer used) A given condition or state.

    • Thus vvhilst he hopt he hild her least, so altereth the cace / VVith such as she, Ah such it is to build on such a face. — 1586
25. •
    (no longer used) A love affair.

    • I thought it only an amourette when you told me. It was a fire — a conflagration; subdue it. I saw it was a case, and I advised you to try — dissipation. — 1876
26. •
    (slang, no longer used) A counterfeit crown (five-shilling coin).

verb4

1. •
   To place (an item or items of manufacture) into a box, as in preparation for shipment.
2. •
   (informal) To survey (a building or other location) surreptitiously, as in preparation for a robbery.

   • You are in the grounds of Brockholes Abbey, a house into which a great deal of valuable property has just been moved. And your job is to case the joint for a break in. — 1977
3. •
   To cover or protect with, or as if with, a case; to enclose.

   • The man who, cased in steel, had passed whole days and nights in the saddle. — 1855
4. •
   (no longer used) To propose hypothetical cases.

   • Casing upon the Matter. — 1692

adjective1

1. •
   (slang) The last remaining card of a particular rank.

   • He drew the case eight!

noun2

1. •
   Acronym of computer-aided software engineering.
2. •
   Acronym of coatings, adhesives, sealants and elastomers.