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Focus vs Imagination - What's the difference?

focus | imagination |

As nouns the difference between focus and imagination

is that focus is a point at which reflected or refracted rays of light converge while imagination is the image-making power of the mind; the act of creating or reproducing ideally an object not previously perceived; the ability to create such images.

As a verb focus

is to cause (rays of light, etc) to converge at a single point.

focus

English

(wikipedia focus)

Noun

  • (countable, optics) A point at which reflected or refracted rays of light converge.
  • (countable, geometry) A point of a conic at which rays reflected from a curve or surface converge.
  • (uncountable, photography, cinematography) The fact of the convergence of light on the photographic medium.
  • * {{quote-magazine, year=2013, month=July-August, author= Catherine Clabby
  • , magazine=(American Scientist), title= Focus on Everything , passage=Not long ago, it was difficult to produce photographs of tiny creatures with every part in focus'.
  • (uncountable, photography, cinematography) The quality of the convergence of light on the photographic medium.
  • (uncountable) Concentration of attention.
  • (countable, seismology) The exact point of where an earthquake occurs, in three dimensions.
  • (computing, graphical user interface) The indicator of the currently active element in a user interface.
  • (linguistics) The most important word or phrase in a sentence or passage, or the one that imparts information.
  • Verb

  • To cause (rays of light, etc) to converge at a single point.
  • To adjust (a lens, an optical instrument) in order to position an image with respect to the focal plane.
  • You'll need to focus the microscope carefully in order to capture the full detail of this surface.
  • To concentrate one's attention.
  • Focus on passing the test.
  • To concentrate one’s attention.
  • If you're going to beat your competitors, you need to focus .

    Usage notes

    The spellings focusses'', ''focussing'', ''focussed'' are more common in Commonwealth English than in American English, but in both varieties they are less common than the spellings ''focuses'', ''focusing'', ''focused .

    Derived terms

    * focus group * in focus * out of focus

    imagination

    English

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • The image-making power of the mind; the act of creating or reproducing ideally an object not previously perceived; the ability to create such images.
  • Imagination is one of the most advanced human faculties.
  • * {{quote-book, year=1913, author=
  • , title=Lord Stranleigh Abroad , chapter=5 citation , passage=She removed Stranleigh’s coat with a dexterity that aroused his imagination .}}
  • Particularly, construction of false images; fantasizing.
  • You think someone's been following you? That's just your imagination .
  • Creativity; resourcefulness.
  • His imagination makes him a valuable team member.
  • A mental image formed by the action of the imagination as a faculty; a conception; a notion; an imagining; something imagined.
  • * 1597 , Francis Bacon, "Of Youth and Age", Essays :
  • And yet the invention of young men, is more lively than that of old; and imaginations stream into their minds better, and, as it were, more divinely.

    Synonyms

    * (the representative power) creativity, fancy, imaginativeness, invention, inventiveness