absolute vs direct

absolute

adj
  • Pure, free from mixture or adulteration; unmixed. 

  • Indicating an expression that is true for all real numbers, or of all values of the variable; unconditional. 

  • Relating to the absolute temperature scale (based on absolute zero); kelvin. 

  • Positive; not graded (not comparative or superlative). 

  • Free from imperfection, perfect, complete; especially, perfectly embodying a quality in its essential characteristics or to its highest degree. 

  • Pertaining to a grading system based on the knowledge of the individual and not on the comparative knowledge of the group of students. 

  • Having no direct object, like "kill" in "if looks could kill". 

  • Independent of arbitrary units of measurement, standards, or properties; not comparative or relative. 

  • Independent of (references to) other arts; expressing things (beauty, ideas, etc) only in one art. 

  • Free of restrictions, limitations, qualifications or conditions; unconditional. 

  • Indicating that a tenure or estate in land is not conditional or liable to terminate on (strictly) any occurrence or (sometimes contextually) certain kinds of occurrence. 

  • Fundamental, ultimate, intrinsic; not relative; independent of references or relations to other things or standards. 

  • Complete, utter, outright; unmitigated, not qualified or diminished in any way. 

  • Having reference to or derived in the simplest manner from the fundamental units of mass, time, and length. 

  • Unrestricted by laws, a constitution, or parliamentary or judicial or other checks; (legally) unlimited in power, especially if despotic. 

  • Syntactically connected to the rest of the sentence in an atypical manner, or not relating to or depending on it, like in the nominative absolute or genitive absolute, accusative absolute or ablative absolute. 

  • Expressing a relative term without a definite comparison, like "older" in "an older person should be treated with respect". 

  • Being or pertaining to an inflected verb that is not preceded by any number of particles or compounded with a preverb. 

  • Lacking a modified substantive, like "hungry" in "feed the hungry". 

  • Characteristic of an absolutist ruler: domineering, peremptory. 

  • Positive, certain; unquestionable; not in doubt. 

  • As measured using an absolute value. 

noun
  • A concentrated natural flower oil, used for perfumes; an alcoholic extract of a concrete. 

  • A realm which exists without reference to anything else; that which can be imagined purely by itself; absolute ego. 

  • In a plane, the two imaginary circular points at infinity; in space of three dimensions, the imaginary circle at infinity. 

  • That which exists (or has a certain property, nature, size, etc) independent of references to other standards or external conditions; that which is universally valid; that which is not relative, conditional, qualified or mitigated. 

  • The whole of reality; the totality to which everything is reduced; the unity of spirit and nature; God. 

direct

adj
  • Immediate; express; plain; unambiguous. 

  • having a single flight number. 

  • Straight; not crooked, oblique, or circuitous; leading by the short or shortest way to a point or end. 

  • Pertaining to, or effected immediately by, action of the people through their votes instead of through one or more representatives or delegates. 

  • Proceeding without deviation or interruption. 

  • Straightforward; sincere. 

  • In the line of descent; not collateral. 

  • In the direction of the general planetary motion, or from west to east; in the order of the signs; not retrograde; said of the motion of a celestial body. 

verb
  • To manage, control, steer. 

  • To aim (something) at (something else). 

  • To point out to or show (somebody) the right course or way; to guide, as by pointing out the way. 

  • To point out to with authority; to instruct as a superior; to order. 

adv
  • Directly. 

How often have the words absolute and direct occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )