element

Etymology

From Middle English element, from Old French element, from Latin elementum (“a first principle, element, rudiment”) (see further etymology there).

noun

1. One of the simplest or essential parts or principles of which anything consists, or upon which the constitution or fundamental powers of anything are based.
   1. (chemistry) Any one of the simplest chemical substances that cannot be decomposed in a chemical reaction or by any chemical means and made up of atoms all having the same number of protons.
   2. One of the four basic building blocks of matter in theories of ancient philosophers and alchemists: water, earth, fire, and air.
   3. (usually in the plural) A basic, simple substance out of which something is made, raw material.
   4. (law) A required aspect or component of a cause of action. A deed is regarded as a violation of law only if each element can be proved.
   5. (set theory) One of the objects in a set.
   6. (mathematics) One of the entries of a matrix.
   7. Any of the teeth of a zip fastener.
2. A small part of the whole.
   an element of the picture
3. A small but present amount of a quality, a hint.
   an element of doubt
   The case was that of a murder. It had an element of mystery about it, however, which was puzzling the authorities. A turban and loincloth soaked in blood had been found; also a staff. 1927, F. E. Penny, chapter 4, in Pulling the Strings
4. A factor, one of the conditions contributing to a result.
5. (obsolete) The sky.
6. (obsolete) Any one of the heavenly spheres believed to carry the celestial bodies.
7. (in the plural only, with "the") Atmospheric forces such as strong winds and rains.
   exposed to the elements
8. A place or state of being that an individual or object is best suited to.
   to be in one's element
9. (Christianity, usually in the plural) The bread and wine taken at Holy Communion.
10. A group of people within a larger group having a particular common characteristic.
    You sometimes find the hooligan element at football matches.
11. (in the plural only) The basic principles of a field of knowledge, basics, fundamentals, rudiments.
12. A component in electrical equipment, often in the form of a coil, having a high resistance, thereby generating heat when a current is passed through it.
    The element in this electric kettle can heat the water in under a minute.
13. (mathematics) An infinitesimal interval of a quantity, a differential.
    The element of area in Cartesian coordinates is dx dy.
14. (astronomy) An orbital element; one of the parameters needed to uniquely specify a particular orbit.
15. (computing) One of the conceptual objects in a markup language, usually represented in text by tags.
    The div element was introduced into HTML as a solution to the layout problem. 2011, Richard Wagner, Creating Web Pages All-in-One For Dummies

verb

1. (obsolete) To compound of elements.
   those things which elemented [love] 1633, John Donne, A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning
   elemented bodies 1661, Robert Boyle, The Sceptical Chymist
   thou art elemented and organed 1681, Maunyngham, Disc., page 89
2. (obsolete) To constitute and be the elements of.
   His very soul was elemented of nothing but sadness. 1658, Izaak Walton, Life of Donne