A dimension is a point, observation or explanation, and designates the action and effect of dimensioning.
As such, a dimension can refer to the notes or notes made in the margins or at the bottom of a handwritten or printed text.
In this sense, the dimensions are useful to help us understand a text, because through observations or explanations of issues alluding to the main theme can clarify the meaning of certain passages.
We can find the dimensions in books, in the form of comments at the bottom of the page, or we can even do them ourselves to better understand a text.
In our day to day, we can use the term figuratively when we want to highlight or explain something specific: “We went well in the exam, but it is worth noting that class notes did not help.”
Theater Dimensioning
In the theater, the dimension refers to the descriptive notes or comments that the author includes in the play to explain details related to the movements and actions of the characters on stage, as well as everything related to the scenic setting.
The dimensions are not part of the text pronounced by the actors, and its function is rather to indicate to the actors and the director certain aspects of the theatrical performance, such as gestures, tone of voice, expressions, etc.
The dimensions, in general, appear in all texts of a dramatic nature, whether for theater, television, cinema or opera.
An example of dimensioning occurs in this dialogue of The Two Nobles of Verona , extracted from the literature of William Shakespeare. Note the dimension in the parentheses:
«Lightning: Lord: your glove (giving him a glove).
»Valentine: It’s not mine. I have both.
Dimensioning in technical drawing
Within the technical drawing, dimensioning is the process of coating a plane or sketch with information regarding the length, height or dimension of an object or graphic representation.
The dimensioning also serves to indicate other relevant details of the object, such as its functionality, the type of materials to be used, the distances or any other type of references, by means of figures, lines or symbols.
As such, the dimensioning is a work of professional complexity that is subject to a series of standards.