from
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
Console \Con"sole\, n. [F.]
1. (Arch.)
(a) A bracket whose projection is not more than half its
height.
(b) Any small bracket; also, a console table.
[1913 Webster]
2. (Computers) The keyboard and monitor of a computer
considered together.
[GG]
3. (Engineering) The controlling portion of an electrical,
electronic, or mechanical device or system, from which the
operator may observe the state of the system as indicated
by gauges or on some form of {display[n3]}, and may direct
or control the action of the system.
[GG +PJC]
4. the desklike controlling unit of an organ containing the
keyboard, pedals, stops, etc. by means of which the organ
is played.
[PJC]
5. a home entertainment device such as a television, radio,
phonograph, CD player, or combination of these, designed
as a piece of furniture, to stand on the floor rather than
on a table or in a separate cabinet; -- also used
attributively in the phrase {console model}.
[PJC]
{Console table}, a table whose top is supported by two or
more consoles instead of legs.
[1913 Webster]