Link Centre Dictionary

define

de·fine

UK/dɪˈfaɪn/ US/dɪˈfaɪn/ fairly common

verb

1.

give a definition for the meaning of a word

  • “Define”
  • “'”
2.
3.

determine the nature of

  • “What defines a good wine?”
4.

delineate the form or outline of

  • “The tree was clearly defined by the light”
  • “The camera could define the smallest object”
Synonyms

Origin

From Middle English definen, from Old French definer, variant of definir, from Latin dēfīniō (“limit, settle, define”), from dē + fīniō (“set a limit, bound, end”).

Phrases

  • defined benefit
  • defined benefits
  • defined contribution
  • defined contributions
  • defining vocabulary
  • software defined radio
  • user-defined function
  • user-defined graphic

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

Narrower 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.