a rather large interval of time that is meaningful in the life of a person, in history, etc., because of its particular characteristics

a period of illness; a period of great profitability for a company; a period of social unrest in Germany.

any specified division or portion of time

poetry of the period from 1603 to 1660.

a round of time or series of years by which time is measured.

a round of time marked by the recurrence of some phenomenon or occupied by some recurring process or action.

the point of completion of a round of time or of the time during which something lasts or happens.

Education . a specific length of time during school hours that a student spends in a classroom, laboratory, etc., or has free.

any of the parts of equal length into which a game is divided.

the time during which something runs its course.

the present time.

the point or character (.) used to mark the end of a declarative sentence, indicate an abbreviation, etc.; full stop.

a full pause, as is made at the end of a complete sentence; full stop.

a sentence, esp. a well-balanced, impressive sentence

the stately periods of Churchill.

a periodic sentence.

an occurrence of menstruation.

a time of the month during which menstruation occurs.

Geology . the basic unit of geologic time, during which a standard rock system is formed

comprising two or more epochs and included with other periods in an era.

Physics . the duration of one complete cycle of a wave or oscillation; the reciprocal of the frequency.

Music . a division of a composition, usually a passage of eight or sixteen measures, complete or satisfactory in itself, commonly consisting of two or more contrasted or complementary phrases ending with a conclusive cadence.

Astronomy .

Also called period of rotation. the time in which a body rotates once on its axis.

Also called period of revolution. the time in which a planet or satellite revolves once about its primary.

Mathematics . See under periodic ( def. 5 ) .

Classical Prosody . a group of two or more cola.

noting, pertaining to, evocative of, imitating, or representing a historical period or the styles current during a specific period of history

period costumes; a period play.

(used by a speaker or writer to indicate that a decision is irrevocable or that a point is no longer discussable)

I forbid you to go, period.

noun

aeon , age , course , cycle , date , days , duration , epoch , era , generation , interval , measure , season , space , span , spell , stage , stretch , term , time , while , [[yearsnotes:epoch applies to the beginning of a new period marked by radical changes and new developments - while era applies to the entire period; age denotes a period identified with some dominant personality or characteristic and period pertains to any portion of time]] , cessation , close , closing , closure , conclusion , discontinuance , end , limit , stop , [[terminationnotes:epoch applies to the beginning of a new period marked by radical changes and new developments - while era applies to the entire period; age denotes a period identified with some dominant personality or characteristic and period pertains to any portion of time]] , day , phase , cease , completion , consummation , ending , end of the line , finish , stopping point , termination , terminus , wind-up , wrap-up , century , decade , dot , eon , finis , gestation , hear , periodization , point , semester