scopes Meaning, Definition & Usage

1. noun Tennessee highschool teacher who violated a state law by teaching evolution; in a highly publicized trial in 1925 he was prosecuted by William Jennings Bryan and defended by Clarence Darrow (1900-1970)
   John Scopes; John Thomas Scopes.
   
2. noun an area in which something acts or operates or has power or control: "the range of a supersonic jet"
   ambit; reach; orbit; range; compass; scope.
   
   • a piano has a greater range than the human voice
   • the ambit of municipal legislation
   • within the compass of this article
   • within the scope of an investigation
   • outside the reach of the law
   • in the political orbit of a world power
3. noun the state of the environment in which a situation exists
   scope; setting; background.
   
   • you can't do that in a university setting
4. noun a magnifier of images of distant objects
   scope; telescope.
   
5. noun electronic equipment that provides visual images of varying electrical quantities
   scope; cathode-ray oscilloscope; CRO; oscilloscope.
   

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