Link Centre Dictionary

characterize

cha·rac·te·rize

UK/ˈkæɹəktəɹaɪz/ US/ˈkɛɹəktəɹaɪz/ uncommon

verb

1.

describe or portray the character or the qualities or peculiarities of

  • “You can characterize his behavior as that of an egotist”
  • “This poem can be characterized as a lament for a dead lover”
2.

be characteristic of

  • “What characterizes a Venetian painting?”
Synonyms

Origin

From Medieval Latin charactērizō, from Ancient Greek χαρακτηρίζω (kharaktērízō, “to designate by a characteristic mark”), from χαρακτήρ (kharaktḗr, “a mark, character”).

Related words

Broader terms

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.