ritual

adj 1: of or relating to or characteristic of religious rituals;

"ritual killing"

2: of or relating to or employed in social rites or rituals; "a

ritual dance of Haiti"; "sedate little colonial tribe with

its ritual tea parties"- Nadine Gordimer

n 1: any customary observance or practice [syn: {rite}]

2: the prescribed procedure for conducting religious ceremonies

3: stereotyped behavior

virtual

(Via the technical term {virtual memory}, probably from the

term "virtual image" in optics) 1. Common alternative to

{logical}; often used to refer to the artificial objects (like

addressable {virtual memory} larger than physical memory)

created by a computer system to help the system control access

to shared resources.

2. Simulated; performing the functions of something that isn't

really there. An imaginative child's doll may be a virtual

playmate.

Opposite of {real} or physical.

[{Jargon File}]

(1994-11-30)