from
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
Present \Pres"ent\, n. [Cf. F. pr['e]sent. See {Present}, a.]
1. Present time; the time being; time in progress now, or at
the moment contemplated; as, at this present.
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Past and present, wound in one. --Tennyson.
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2. pl. (Law) Present letters or instrument, as a deed of
conveyance, a lease, letter of attorney, or other writing;
as in the phrase, " Know all men by these presents," that
is, by the writing itself, " per has literas praesentes; "
-- in this sense, rarely used in the singular.
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3. (Gram.) A present tense, or the form of the verb denoting
the present tense.
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{At present}, at the present time; now.
{For the present}, for the tine being; temporarily.
{In present}, at once, without delay. [Obs.] "With them, in
present, half his kingdom; the rest to follow at his
death." --Milton.
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