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Cast means to throw something with force, to pick someone for a part in a play or to submit a ballot to vote. (verb)

An example of cast is to throw out a fishing line.
An example of cast is to select who will play a character in the school production of "Into the Woods."
An example of cast is to put your ballot in the voting box on election day.

A cast is something formed in a certain way or the company of a play. (noun)

An example of cast is what one wears on a broken limb.
An example of cast is all of the actors and actresses in a Broadway production.

See cast in Webster's New World College Dictionary

transitive verb cast, casting

1. to put, deposit, or throw with force or violence; fling; hurl
2. to give vent to as if by throwing: to cast aspersions
to deposit (a ballot); register (a vote)
1. to cause to fall or turn; direct: to cast one's eyes or attention on a thing
2. to give forth; project: to cast light, gloom, etc.
to throw out or drop (a net, anchor, etc.) at the end of a rope or cable
to throw out (a fly, bait, lure, etc.) at the end of a fishing line
to draw (lots) or shake (dice) out of a container
to bring forth (young), esp. prematurely
1. to throw off or away
2. to shed; slough: the snake casts its skin
to add up (accounts, a sum, etc.); calculate by arithmetic
to calculate (a horoscope, tides, etc.)
to arrange in some form or system; formulate
1. to form (molten metal, plastic, etc.) into a particular shape by pouring or pressing into a mold
2. to make by such a method
1. to choose and assign actors for (a play, film, etc.)
2. to select (an actor) for (a role or part)
to twist; turn; warp
Naut. to direct the bow of (a ship) to port or starboard in getting under way

intransitive verb

to throw dice
to throw out a fly, etc. at the end of a fishing line
Brit., Dialectal to vomit
to turn; warp
to add up figures; calculate
to calculate horoscopes, tides, etc.
to be formed in a mold
Obsolete
1. to make a forecast; conjecture
2. to deliberate; plan
Hunting to search for game, a trail, or a lost scent
Naut.
1. to cast a ship
2. to veer

noun

the act of casting; a throw; also, a way of casting or distance thrown; specif.,
1. a throw of dice; also, the number thrown
2. a stroke of fortune
3. a turn of the eye; glance; look
4. a throw of a fishing line, net, etc.
5. an adding up; calculation
6. a conjecture; forecast
a quantity or thing cast in a certain way; specif.,
1. something thrown up, off, or out, as bait on a line, a pair of hawks in falconry, the dirt thrown up by worms, the shed skin of an insect, etc.
2. the amount of metal cast at one time
3. something formed in or as in a mold, as a bronze or plaster reproduction of a statue modeled in clay; also, the mold
4. a mold or impression taken of an object or of printing type
5. a plaster form for immobilizing a broken arm, leg, etc.
6. the set of actors in a play or movie
the form or direction in which a thing is cast; specif.,
1. an arrangement
2. an appearance or stamp, as of features
3. kind; quality: of an aristocratic cast
4. a tinge; shade: a reddish cast
5. a trace or suggestion
6. a turn or twist to one side; tendency; bent
7. a slight turning in or out of the eye
Hunting a scattering of the hounds to find a lost scent
Med. a substance formed and molded in the cavities of some diseased organs: renal casts

See cast in American Heritage Dictionary 4

(kăst)

verb cast cast, cast·ing, casts

verb, transitive

a. To throw (something, especially something light): The angler cast the line.
b. To throw with force; hurl: waves that cast driftwood far up on the shore. See Synonyms at throw.
To shed; molt.
To throw forth; drop: cast anchor.
To throw on the ground, as in wrestling.
To deposit or indicate (a ballot or vote).
To turn or direct: All eyes were cast upon the speaker.
To cause to fall onto or over something or in a certain direction, as if by throwing: candles casting light; cast aspersions on my character; findings that cast doubt on our hypothesis.
To bestow; confer: “The government I cast upon my brother” (Shakespeare).
a. To roll or throw (dice, for example).
b. To draw (lots).
To give birth to prematurely: The cow cast a calf.
To cause (hunting hounds) to scatter and circle in search of a lost scent.
a. To choose actors for (a play, for example).
b. To assign a certain role to (an actor): cast her as the lead.
c. To assign an actor to (a part): cast each role carefully.
To form (liquid metal, for example) into a particular shape by pouring into a mold.
To give a form to; arrange: decided to cast the book in three parts.
To contrive; devise: cast a plan.
To calculate or compute; add up (a column of figures).
To calculate astrologically: cast my horoscope.
To warp; twist: floorboards cast by age.
Nautical To turn (a ship); change to the opposite tack.

verb, intransitive

To throw something, especially to throw out a lure or bait at the end of a fishing line.
To add a column of figures; make calculations.
To make a conjecture or a forecast.
To receive form or shape in a mold.
To become warped.
To search for a lost scent in hunting with hounds.
Nautical
a. To veer to leeward from a former course; fall off.
b. To put about; tack.
To choose actors for the parts in a play, movie, or other theatrical presentation.
Obsolete To estimate; conjecture.

noun

a. The act or an instance of casting or throwing.
b. The distance thrown.
a. A throwing of a fishing line or net into the water.
b. The line or net thrown.
a. A throw of dice.
b. The number thrown.
A stroke of fortune or fate; lot.
a. A direction or expression of the eyes.
b. A slight squint.
Something, such as molted skin, that is thrown off, out, or away.
The addition of a column of figures; calculation.
A conjecture; a forecast.
a. The act of pouring molten material into a mold.
b. The amount of molten material poured into a mold at a single operation.
c. Something formed by this means: The sculpture was a bronze cast.
An impression formed in a mold or matrix; a mold: a cast of her face made in plaster.
A rigid dressing, usually made of gauze and plaster of Paris, used to immobilize an injured body part, as in a fracture or dislocation. Also called plaster cast.
The form in which something is made or constructed; arrangement: the close-set cast of her features.
Outward form or look; appearance: a suit of stylish cast.
Sort; type: fancied himself to be of a macho cast.
An inclination; tendency: her thoughtful cast of mind.
The actors in a play, movie, or other theatrical presentation.
A slight trace of color; a tinge.
A distortion of shape.
The circling of hounds to pick up a scent in hunting.
A pair of hawks released by a falconer at one time. See Synonyms at flock¹.

Phrasal Verbs: cast about/around To make a search; look: had to cast about for an hour, looking for a good campsite. To devise means; contrive. cast off To discard; reject: cast off old clothing. To let go; set loose: cast off a boat; cast off a line. To make the last row of stitches in knitting. Printing To estimate the space a mansucript will occupy when set into type. cast on To make the first row of stitches in knitting. cast out To drive out by force; expel.

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