English Explanatory Dictionary

describe

English dictionary entry

Meanings

verb

To represent in words.
To represent by drawing; to draw a plan of; to delineate; to trace or mark out.
To give rise to a geometrical structure.
To introduce a new taxon to science by explaining its characteristics and particularly how it differs from other taxa.
To distribute into parts, groups, or classes; to mark off; to class.

Pronunciation

/dɪˈskɹaɪb/ /dəˈskɹaɪb/ [dɪˈskɹaɪ̯b] [dɪˈskɹɑɪ̯b] En-us-describe.ogg [dɪˈskɹəjb] [dɪˈskɹɑjb]

Word forms

describe describes describing described

Etymology

From Middle English descriven, from Old French descrivre, from Latin dēscrībō (“to copy off, transcribe, sketch off, describe in painting or writing”), from dē (“off”) + scrībō (“write”); see scribe and shrive. Displaced native Old English āmearcian.

Synonyms

betell depict report delineate describe draw chronicle explain narrate recount relate represent set forth state portray bewrite

Antonyms

burlesque caricature distort exaggerate misrepresent

Related words

describable description descriptive descriptivism descriptivist descriptor scribe

Derived words

abovedescribed aforedescribed describability describee describer misdescribe overdescribe predescribe redescribe

This entry uses open data from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA/GFDL). Word forms are used for search and are not indexed as separate pages.

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