extreme: Meaning and Definition of

ex•treme

Pronunciation: (ik-strēm'), [key]
— adj., n. -trem•er, -trem•est,
—adj.
  1. of a character or kind farthest removed from the ordinary or average: extreme measures.
  2. utmost or exceedingly great in degree: extreme joy.
  3. farthest from the center or middle; outermost; endmost: the extreme limits of a town.
  4. farthest, utmost, or very far in any direction: an object at the extreme point of vision.
  5. exceeding the bounds of moderation: extreme fashions.
  6. going to the utmost or very great lengths in action, habit, opinion, etc.: an extreme conservative.
  7. last or final: extreme hopes.
  8. extremely dangerous or difficult: extreme skiing.
—n.
  1. the utmost or highest degree, or a very high degree: cautious to an extreme.
  2. one of two things as remote or different from each other as possible: the extremes of joy and grief.
  3. the furthest or utmost length; an excessive length, beyond the ordinary or average: extremes in dress.
  4. an extreme act, measure, condition, etc.: the extreme of poverty.
    1. the first or the last term, as of a proportion or series.
    2. a relative maximum or relative minimum value of a function in a given region.
  5. the subject or the predicate of the conclusion of a syllogism; either of two terms that are separated in the premises and brought together in the conclusion.
  6. the utmost point, or extremity, of something.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.
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