register

/ˈrɛdʒəstər/

/ˈrɛdʒɪstə/

Other forms: registered; registers; registering

Register has several meanings, but one of the most common is to write down or record officially. Like registering your car with the DMV and registering for classes at the beginning of a semester.

Someone needs to register all the ways you can use the word register: As a noun it means the actual book that you record things in. But a register is also the range of sound your voice can make, and that thing the checkout lady uses to ring up your grocery bill. As a verb, register means to mark down officially or sign up, but also to show emotion: if cats and dogs rain from the sky, your face will likely register a look of disbelief.

Definitions of register

1. noun

   an official written record of names or events or transactions
   synonyms: registry

   types:

   cadaster, cadastre

   a public register showing the details of ownership and value of land; made for the purpose of taxation

   check register

   a register of checks issued (usually in numeric order)

   studbook

   official record of the pedigree of purebred animals especially horses

   rent-roll

   a register of rents; includes the names of tenants and the amount of rent they pay

   type of:

   written account, written record

   a written document preserving knowledge of facts or events
2. noun

   a book in which names and transactions are listed
   types:

   accounting, accounting system, method of accounting

   a bookkeeper's chronological list of related debits and credits of a business; forms part of a ledger of accounts

   inventory

   (accounting) the value of a firm's current assets including raw materials and work in progress and finished goods

   payroll, paysheet

   a list of employees and their salaries

   control account

   an account that shows totals of amounts entered in a subsidiary ledger

   accounting entry, entry, ledger entry

   a written record of a commercial transaction

   credit side

   account of payments received; usually the right side of a financial statement

   debit side

   account of payments owed; usually the left side of a financial statement

   accrual basis

   a method of accounting in which each item is entered as it is earned or incurred regardless of when actual payments are received or made

   cash basis

   a method of accounting in which each item is entered as payments are received or made

   pooling of interest

   an accounting method used in the merging of companies; the balance sheets are added together item by item; this method is tax-free

   audit, audited account

   an inspection of the accounting procedures and records by a trained accountant or CPA

   limited review, review

   (accounting) a service (less exhaustive than an audit) that provides some assurance to interested parties as to the reliability of financial data

   type of:

   record

   a document that can serve as legal evidence of a transaction
3. verb

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

   file

   record in a public office or in a court of law

   patent

   grant rights to; grant a patent for

   enrol, enroll, enter, inscribe, recruit

   register formally as a participant or member

   list

   include in a list

   book

   register in a hotel booker

   trademark

   register the trademark of

   draft, enlist, muster in

   engage somebody to enter the army

   unionise, unionize

   recruit for a union or organize into a union

   matriculate

   enroll as a student

   inventory, stock-take, take stock

   make or include in an itemized record or report

   empanel, impanel

   enter into a list of prospective jurors

   index

   list in an index

   blacklist

   put on a blacklist so as to banish or cause to be boycotted

   post

   enter on a public list

   type of:

   enter, put down, record

   make a record of; set down in permanent form
4. verb

   record in a public office or in a court of law
   synonyms: file

   types:

   trademark

   register the trademark of
5. verb

   enroll to vote
   “register for an election”

   type of:

   enrol, enroll, enter, inscribe, recruit

   register formally as a participant or member
6. verb

   have one's name listed as a candidate for several parties
   synonyms: cross-file

   types:

   slate

   enter on a list or slate for an election

   type of:

   campaign, run

   run, stand, or compete for an office or a position
7. verb

   indicate a certain reading; of gauges and instruments
   synonyms: read, record, show

   types:

   say

   indicate

   show

   give evidence of, as of records

   strike

   indicate (a certain time) by striking

   attest

   establish or verify the usage of

   surcharge

   show an omission in (an account) for which credit ought to have been given

   type of:

   indicate

   state or express briefly
8. 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
   types:

   accumulator, accumulator register

   (computer science) a register that has a built-in adder that adds an input number to the contents of the register

   counter

   (computer science) a register whose contents go through a regular series of states (usually states indicating consecutive integers)

   index register

   (computer science) a register used to determine the address of an operand

   shift register

   (computer science) register in which all bits can be shifted one or more positions to the left or to the right

   type of:

   memory device, storage device

   a device that preserves information for retrieval
9. noun

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

   air duct, air passage, airway

   a duct that provides ventilation (as in mines)
10. noun

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

    regulator

    any of various controls or devices for regulating or controlling fluid flow, pressure, temperature, etc.
11. noun

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

    type of:

    cashbox, money box, till

    a strongbox for holding cash
12. 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
    types:

    head register, head tone, head voice

    the higher ranges of the voice in speaking or singing; the vibrations of sung notes are felt in the head

    chest register, chest tone, chest voice

    the lower ranges of the voice in speaking or singing

    falsetto

    a male singing voice with artificially high tones in an upper register

    type of:

    quality, timber, timbre, tone

    (music) the distinctive property of a complex sound (a voice or noise or musical sound)
13. verb

    manipulate the registers of an organ
    type of:

    play

    perform music on (a musical instrument)
14. verb

    be aware of
    “Did you register any change when I pressed the button?”

    synonyms: record
15. verb

    show in one's face
    “Her surprise did not register”

    synonyms:

    record

    be aware of

    type of:

    show, show up

    be or become visible or noticeable
16. verb

    enter into someone's consciousness
    “Did this event register in your parents' minds?”

    synonyms:

    record

    be aware of

    type of:

    affect

    act physically on; have an effect upon
17. verb

    send by registered mail
    “I'd like to register this letter”

    type of:

    mail, post, send

    cause to be directed or transmitted to another place