Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Field \Field\, n. [OE. feld, fild, AS. feld; akin to D. veld, G.
   feld, Sw. f["a]lt, Dan. felt, Icel. fold field of grass, AS.
   folde earth, land, ground, OS. folda.]
   1. Cleared land; land suitable for tillage or pasture;
      cultivated ground; the open country.

   2. A piece of land of considerable size; esp., a piece
      inclosed for tillage or pasture.

            Fields which promise corn and wine.   --Byron.

   3. A place where a battle is fought; also, the battle itself.

            In this glorious and well-foughten field. --Shak.

            What though the field be lost?        --Milton.

   4. An open space; an extent; an expanse. Esp.:
      (a) Any blank space or ground on which figures are drawn
          or projected.
      (b) The space covered by an optical instrument at one
          view.

                Without covering, save yon field of stars.
                                                  --Shak.

                Ask of yonder argent fields above. --Pope.

   5. (Her.) The whole surface of an escutcheon; also, so much
      of it is shown unconcealed by the different bearings upon
      it. See Illust. of {Fess}, where the field is represented
      as gules (red), while the fess is argent (silver).

   6. An unresticted or favorable opportunity for action,
      operation, or achievement; province; room.

            Afforded a clear field for moral experiments.
                                                  --Macaulay.

   7. A collective term for all the competitors in any outdoor
      contest or trial, or for all except the favorites in the
      betting.

   8. (Baseball) That part of the grounds reserved for the
      players which is outside of the diamond; -- called also
      {outfield}.

   Note: Field is often used adjectively in the sense of
         belonging to, or used in, the fields; especially with
         reference to the operations and equipments of an army
         during a campaign away from permanent camps and
         fortifications. In most cases such use of the word is
         sufficiently clear; as, field battery; field
         fortification; field gun; field hospital, etc. A field
         geologist, naturalist, etc., is one who makes
         investigations or collections out of doors. A survey
         uses a field book for recording field notes, i.e.,
         measurment, observations, etc., made in field work
         (outdoor operations). A farmer or planter employs field
         hands, and may use a field roller or a field derrick.
         Field sports are hunting, fishing, athletic games, etc.

   {Coal field} (Geol.) See under {Coal}.

   {Field artillery}, light ordnance mounted on wheels, for the
      use of a marching army.

   {Field basil} (Bot.), a plant of the Mint family ({Calamintha
      Acinos}); -- called also {basil thyme}.

   {Field colors} (Mil.), small flags for marking out the
      positions for squadrons and battalions; camp colors.

   {Field cricket} (Zo["o]l.), a large European cricket
      ({Gryllus campestric}), remarkable for its loud notes.

   {Field day}.
      (a) A day in the fields.
      (b) (Mil.) A day when troops are taken into the field for
          instruction in evolutions. --Farrow.
      (c) A day of unusual exertion or display; a gala day.

   {Field driver}, in New England, an officer charged with the
      driving of stray cattle to the pound.

   {Field duck} (Zo["o]l.), the little bustard ({Otis tetrax}),
      found in Southern Europe.

   {Field glass}. (Optics)
      (a) A binocular telescope of compact form; a lorgnette; a
          race glass.
      (b) A small achromatic telescope, from 20 to 24 inches
          long, and having 3 to 6 draws.
      (c) See {Field lens}.

   {Field lark}. (Zo["o]l.)
      (a) The skylark.
      (b) The tree pipit.

   {Field lens} (Optics), that one of the two lenses forming the
      eyepiece of an astronomical telescope or compound
      microscope which is nearer the object glass; -- called
      also {field glass}.

   {Field madder} (Bot.), a plant ({Sherardia arvensis}) used in
      dyeing.

   {Field marshal} (Mil.), the highest military rank conferred
      in the British and other European armies.

   {Field mouse} (Zo["o]l.), a mouse inhabiting fields, as the
      campagnol and the deer mouse. See {Campagnol}, and {Deer
      mouse}.

   {Field officer} (Mil.), an officer above the rank of captain
      and below that of general.

   {Field officer's court} (U.S.Army), a court-martial
      consisting of one field officer empowered to try all
      cases, in time of war, subject to jurisdiction of garrison
      and regimental courts. --Farrow.

   {Field plover} (Zo["o]l.), the black-bellied plover
      ({Charadrius squatarola}); also sometimes applied to the
      Bartramian sandpiper ({Bartramia longicauda}).

   {Field spaniel} (Zo["o]l.), a small spaniel used in hunting
      small game.

   {Field sparrow}. (Zo["o]l.)
      (a) A small American sparrow ({Spizella pusilla}).
      (b) The hedge sparrow. [Eng.]

   {Field staff}> (Mil.), a staff formerly used by gunners to
      hold a lighted match for discharging a gun.

   {Field vole} (Zo["o]l.), the European meadow mouse.

   {Field of ice}, a large body of floating ice; a pack.

   {Field}, or {Field of view}, in a telescope or microscope,
      the entire space within which objects are seen.

   {Field magnet}. see under {Magnet}.

   {Magnetic field}. See {Magnetic}.

   {To back the field}, or {To bet on the field}. See under
      {Back}, v. t. -- {To keep the field}.
      (a) (Mil.) To continue a campaign.
      (b) To maintain one's ground against all comers.

   {To} {lay, or back}, {against the field}, to bet on (a horse,
      etc.) against all comers.

   {To take the field} (Mil.), to enter upon a campaign.

Field \Field\, n. [OE. feld, fild, AS. feld; akin to D. veld, G.
   feld, Sw. f["a]lt, Dan. felt, Icel. fold field of grass, AS.
   folde earth, land, ground, OS. folda.]
   1. Cleared land; land suitable for tillage or pasture;
      cultivated ground; the open country.

   2. A piece of land of considerable size; esp., a piece
      inclosed for tillage or pasture.

            Fields which promise corn and wine.   --Byron.

   3. A place where a battle is fought; also, the battle itself.

            In this glorious and well-foughten field. --Shak.

            What though the field be lost?        --Milton.

   4. An open space; an extent; an expanse. Esp.:
      (a) Any blank space or ground on which figures are drawn
          or projected.
      (b) The space covered by an optical instrument at one
          view.

                Without covering, save yon field of stars.
                                                  --Shak.

                Ask of yonder argent fields above. --Pope.

   5. (Her.) The whole surface of an escutcheon; also, so much
      of it is shown unconcealed by the different bearings upon
      it. See Illust. of {Fess}, where the field is represented
      as gules (red), while the fess is argent (silver).

   6. An unresticted or favorable opportunity for action,
      operation, or achievement; province; room.

            Afforded a clear field for moral experiments.
                                                  --Macaulay.

   7. A collective term for all the competitors in any outdoor
      contest or trial, or for all except the favorites in the
      betting.

   8. (Baseball) That part of the grounds reserved for the
      players which is outside of the diamond; -- called also
      {outfield}.

   Note: Field is often used adjectively in the sense of
         belonging to, or used in, the fields; especially with
         reference to the operations and equipments of an army
         during a campaign away from permanent camps and
         fortifications. In most cases such use of the word is
         sufficiently clear; as, field battery; field
         fortification; field gun; field hospital, etc. A field
         geologist, naturalist, etc., is one who makes
         investigations or collections out of doors. A survey
         uses a field book for recording field notes, i.e.,
         measurment, observations, etc., made in field work
         (outdoor operations). A farmer or planter employs field
         hands, and may use a field roller or a field derrick.
         Field sports are hunting, fishing, athletic games, etc.

   {Coal field} (Geol.) See under {Coal}.

   {Field artillery}, light ordnance mounted on wheels, for the
      use of a marching army.

   {Field basil} (Bot.), a plant of the Mint family ({Calamintha
      Acinos}); -- called also {basil thyme}.

   {Field colors} (Mil.), small flags for marking out the
      positions for squadrons and battalions; camp colors.

   {Field cricket} (Zo["o]l.), a large European cricket
      ({Gryllus campestric}), remarkable for its loud notes.

   {Field day}.
      (a) A day in the fields.
      (b) (Mil.) A day when troops are taken into the field for
          instruction in evolutions. --Farrow.
      (c) A day of unusual exertion or display; a gala day.

   {Field driver}, in New England, an officer charged with the
      driving of stray cattle to the pound.

   {Field duck} (Zo["o]l.), the little bustard ({Otis tetrax}),
      found in Southern Europe.

   {Field glass}. (Optics)
      (a) A binocular telescope of compact form; a lorgnette; a
          race glass.
      (b) A small achromatic telescope, from 20 to 24 inches
          long, and having 3 to 6 draws.
      (c) See {Field lens}.

   {Field lark}. (Zo["o]l.)
      (a) The skylark.
      (b) The tree pipit.

   {Field lens} (Optics), that one of the two lenses forming the
      eyepiece of an astronomical telescope or compound
      microscope which is nearer the object glass; -- called
      also {field glass}.

   {Field madder} (Bot.), a plant ({Sherardia arvensis}) used in
      dyeing.

   {Field marshal} (Mil.), the highest military rank conferred
      in the British and other European armies.

   {Field mouse} (Zo["o]l.), a mouse inhabiting fields, as the
      campagnol and the deer mouse. See {Campagnol}, and {Deer
      mouse}.

   {Field officer} (Mil.), an officer above the rank of captain
      and below that of general.

   {Field officer's court} (U.S.Army), a court-martial
      consisting of one field officer empowered to try all
      cases, in time of war, subject to jurisdiction of garrison
      and regimental courts. --Farrow.

   {Field plover} (Zo["o]l.), the black-bellied plover
      ({Charadrius squatarola}); also sometimes applied to the
      Bartramian sandpiper ({Bartramia longicauda}).

   {Field spaniel} (Zo["o]l.), a small spaniel used in hunting
      small game.

   {Field sparrow}. (Zo["o]l.)
      (a) A small American sparrow ({Spizella pusilla}).
      (b) The hedge sparrow. [Eng.]

   {Field staff}> (Mil.), a staff formerly used by gunners to
      hold a lighted match for discharging a gun.

   {Field vole} (Zo["o]l.), the European meadow mouse.

   {Field of ice}, a large body of floating ice; a pack.

   {Field}, or {Field of view}, in a telescope or microscope,
      the entire space within which objects are seen.

   {Field magnet}. see under {Magnet}.

   {Magnetic field}. See {Magnetic}.

   {To back the field}, or {To bet on the field}. See under
      {Back}, v. t. -- {To keep the field}.
      (a) (Mil.) To continue a campaign.
      (b) To maintain one's ground against all comers.

   {To} {lay, or back}, {against the field}, to bet on (a horse,
      etc.) against all comers.

   {To take the field} (Mil.), to enter upon a campaign.

Field \Field\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Fielded}; p. pr. & vb. n.
   {Fielding}.]
   1. To take the field. [Obs.] --Spenser.

   2. (Ball Playing) To stand out in the field, ready to catch,
      stop, or throw the ball.

Field \Field\, v. t. (Ball Playing)
   To catch, stop, throw, etc. (the ball), as a fielder.

Source : WordNet®

field
     n 1: a piece of land cleared of trees and usually enclosed; "he
          planted a field of wheat"
     2: a region where a battle is being (or has been) fought; "they
        made a tour of Civil War battlefields" [syn: {battlefield},
         {battleground}, {field of battle}, {field of honor}]
     3: somewhere (away from a studio or office or library or
        laboratory) where practical work is done or data is
        collected; "anthropologists do much of their work in the
        field"
     4: a branch of knowledge; "in what discipline is his
        doctorate?"; "teachers should be well trained in their
        subject"; "anthropology is the study of human beings"
        [syn: {discipline}, {subject}, {subject area}, {subject
        field}, {field of study}, {study}, {bailiwick}, {branch of
        knowledge}]
     5: the space around a radiating body within which its
        electromagnetic oscillations can exert force on another
        similar body not in contact with it [syn: {field of force},
         {force field}]
     6: a particular kind of commercial enterprise; "they are
        outstanding in their field" [syn: {field of operation}, {line
        of business}]
     7: a particular environment or walk of life; "his social sphere
        is limited"; "it was a closed area of employment"; "he's
        out of my orbit" [syn: {sphere}, {domain}, {area}, {orbit},
         {arena}]
     8: a piece of land prepared for playing a game; "the home crowd
        cheered when Princeton took the field" [syn: {playing
        field}, {athletic field}, {playing area}]
     9: extensive tract of level open land; "they emerged from the
        woods onto a vast open plain"; "he longed for the fields
        of his youth" [syn: {plain}, {champaign}]
     10: (mathematics) a set of elements such that addition and
         multiplication are commutative and associative and
         multiplication is distributive over addition and there
         are two elements 0 and 1; "the set of all rational
         numbers is a field"
     11: a region in which active military operations are in
         progress; "the army was in the field awaiting action";
         "he served in the Vietnam theater for three years" [syn:
         {field of operations}, {theater}, {theater of operations},
          {theatre}, {theatre of operations}]
     12: all of the horses in a particular horse race
     13: all the competitors in a particular contest or sporting
         event
     14: a geographic region (land or sea) under which something
         valuable is found; "the diamond fields of South Africa"
     15: (computer science) a set of one or more adjacent characters
         comprising a unit of information
     16: the area that is visible (as through an optical instrument)
         [syn: {field of view}]
     17: a place where planes take off and land [syn: {airfield}, {landing
         field}, {flying field}]

field
     v 1: catch or pick up (balls) in baseball or cricket
     2: play as a fielder
     3: answer adequately or successfully; "The lawyer fielded all
        questions from the press"
     4: select (a team or individual player) for a game; "The
        Patriots fielded a young new quarterback for the Rose
        Bowl"

Source : Free On-Line Dictionary of Computing

field
     
         An area of a {database} {record}, or
        {graphical user interface} {form}, into which a particular
        item of data is entered.
     
        Example usage: "The telephone number field is not really a
        numerical field", "Why do we need a four-digit field for the
        year?".
     
        A {database} {column} is the set of all instances of a given
        field from all records in a {table}.
     
        (1999-04-26)