register, registry (noun)

an official written record of names or events or transactions

register (noun)

(music) the timbre that is characteristic of a certain range and manner of production of the human voice or of different pipe organ stops or of different musical instruments

register (noun)

a book in which names and transactions are listed

register (noun)

(computer science) memory device that is the part of computer memory that has a specific address and that is used to hold information of a specific kind

register (noun)

an air passage (usually in the floor or a wall of a room) for admitting or excluding heated air from the room

register (noun)

a regulator (as a sliding plate) for regulating the flow of air into a furnace or other heating device

cash register, register (verb)

a cashbox with an adding machine to register transactions; used in shops to add up the bill

register (verb)

record in writing; enter into a book of names or events or transactions

file, register (verb)

record in a public office or in a court of law

"file for divorce"; "file a complaint"

register (verb)

enroll to vote

"register for an election"

record, register (verb)

be aware of

"Did you register any change when I pressed the button?"

read, register, show, record (verb)

indicate a certain reading; of gauges and instruments

"The thermometer showed thirteen degrees below zero"; "The gauge read `empty'"

cross-file, register (verb)

have one's name listed as a candidate for several parties

register (verb)

show in one's face

"Her surprise did not register"

register (verb)

manipulate the registers of an organ

register (verb)

send by registered mail

"I'd like to register this letter"

register (verb)

enter into someone's consciousness

"Did this event register in your parents' minds?"

register (Noun)

A formal recording of names, events, transactions etc.

register (Noun)

A book of such entries.

register (Noun)

An entry in such a book.

register (Noun)

The act of registering.

register (Noun)

A device that automatically records a quantity.

register (Noun)

Part of the central processing unit used to store and manipulate numbers.

register (Noun)

A list of received calls in a phone set.

register (Noun)

The exact alignment of lines, margins and colors.

register (Noun)

The range of a voice or instrument.

register (Verb)

To enter in a register.

register (Verb)

To enroll, especially to vote.

register (Verb)

To record, especially in writing.

register (Verb)

To express outward signs.

register (Verb)

To record officially and handle specially.

register (Verb)

To adjust so as to be properly aligned.

register (Verb)

To place one's name, or have one's name placed in a register.

register (Verb)

To enroll as a student.

register (Verb)

To make an impression.

register (Noun)

An organ stop.

register (Noun)

A style of a language used in a particular context

register (Noun)

A grille at the outflow of a ventilation duct.

register (Verb)

To be in proper alignment.

register (Verb)

To voluntarily sign over for safe keeping, abandoning complete ownership for partial.

Register

In linguistics, a register is a variety of a language used for a particular purpose or in a particular social setting. For example, when speaking in a formal setting, an English speaker may be more likely to adhere more closely to prescribed grammar, pronounce words ending in -ing with a velar nasal instead of an alveolar nasal, choose more formal words, and refrain from using contractions such as ain't, than when speaking in an informal setting. As with other types of language variation, there tends to be a spectrum of registers rather than a discrete set of obviously distinct varieties – numerous registers could be identified, with no clear boundaries between them. Discourse categorisation is a complex problem, and even in the general definition of "register" given above, there are cases where other kinds of language variation, such as regional or age dialect, overlap. As a result of this complexity, scholarly consensus has not been reached for the definitions of terms such as "register", "field" or "tenor"; different scholars' definitions of these terms are often in direct contradiction of each other. Additional terms such as diatype, genre, text types, style, acrolect, mesolect and basilect, among many others, may be used to cover the same or similar ground. Some prefer to restrict the domain of the term "register" to a specific vocabulary, while others argue against the use of the term altogether. These various approaches with their own "register," or set of terms and meanings, fall under disciplines such as sociolinguistics, stylistics, pragmatics or systemic functional grammar.