Definition of Case

Noun: case keys

An occurrence of something
"it was a case of bad judgment";
- instance, example
A special set of circumstances
"it may rain in which case the picnic will be cancelled";
- event
(law) a comprehensive term for any proceeding in a court of law whereby an individual seeks a legal remedy
- lawsuit, suit, cause, causa
The actual state of things
"that was not the case"
A portable container for carrying several objects
"the musicians left their instrument cases backstage"
A person requiring professional services
"a typical case was the suburban housewife described by a marriage counsellor"
A person who is subjected to experimental or other observational procedures; someone who is an object of investigation
"the cases that we studied were drawn from two different communities";
- subject, guinea pig
A problem requiring investigation
"Perry Mason solved the case of the missing heir"
A statement of facts and reasons used to support an argument
"he stated his case clearly"
The quantity contained in a case
- caseful
Nouns, pronouns or adjectives (often marked by inflection) related in some way to other words in a sentence
- grammatical case
A specific state of mind that is temporary
"a case of the jitters"
A person of a specified kind (usually with many eccentricities)
"a mental case";
- character, eccentric, type
A specific size and style of type within a type family
- font, fount [Brit], typeface, face
An enveloping structure or covering enclosing an animal or plant organ or part
- sheath
The housing or outer covering of something
"the clock has a walnut case";
- shell, casing
The enclosing frame around a door or window opening
"the cases had rotted away and had to be replaced";
- casing
(printing) the receptacle in which a compositor has his type, which is divided into compartments for the different letters, spaces, or numbers
"for English, a compositor will ordinarily have two such cases, the upper case containing the capitals and the lower case containing the small letters";
- compositor's case, typesetter's case
Bed linen consisting of a cover for a pillow
"the burglar carried his loot in a case";
- pillowcase, slip, pillow slip
A glass container used to store and display items in a shop, museum or home
- display case, showcase, vitrine

Verb: case keys

Look over, usually with the intention to rob
"The men cased the housed"
Enclose in, or as if in, a case
"my feet were cased in mud";
- encase, incase