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Glite Dictionary
📝 To explain clearly 🔍 To show clearly
to define

to define

14 1.0
To make the shape or edges of something clear
  • verb
  • /dɪˈfaɪn/
: definir
  • Design should have a prominent role in defining social work practice.
  • well-defined
  • clearly defined
  • defined roles

There's so many other things that define who we are.

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Examples

  • You set very specific goals that define success for your idea.

  • There's so many other things that define who we are.

    Hasan Minhaj

  • Nothing will define your character more than that.

  • Charlie, think of this as your defining moment.

    The Ice Harvest (2005)

  • That fence defines our space.

    Barnyard (2006)

  • The guitar has been the defining musical instrument in American popular music for the past six decades.

    Academic text (2011)

  • See, families should be run like companies with everybody's responsibilities clearly defined.

    Igby Goes Down (2002)

  • You've defined the power of the black hole with your antigravity calculations.

    The Black Hole (1979)

  • Nora bends and runs the brush along the grass, defining the path she planned before.

    Fiction book (1992)

  • The teacher asked the students to define the term using their own words.

Synonyms

to draw a line
vsto define
38 3.8

Set a clear limit on what is acceptable

is instead about clarifying form and borders rather than setting rules
to mark out
vsto define
8 4.0

Show the edges of an area, for example with string or chalk

also clarifies overall form not just practical area limits
to delineate
vsto define
  • Formal
8 7.0

To draw the shape or edge of something clearly

focuses more on overall form and limits than on detailed outline
to demarcate
vsto define
4 7.9

To mark the border between two areas with a line or fence

is broader and clarifies form and outline beyond simple boundary marking
to delimitate
vsto define
  • Formal
1 8.7

Set or mark the limits of an area like a project

clarifies whole shape and outline rather than only setting limits
to set a clear boundary
vsto define
4.1

To make a clear line between two areas or kinds of activity

applies to showing whole shape and outline not only separation

Antonyms

to confuse
152 1.9

Make someone unable to think clearly or make something hard to understand

to obscure
84 7.0

Make something hard to see or understand

How Clear

to clarify
255 3.3
to delineate
  • Formal
8 7.0
to define
14 1.0
to shape
64 2.0
outline
64 2.7
to suggest
∞ 1.6

Surface Forms

define infinitive
defined past
defined past participle
defining present participle
defines third person singular

Etymology

Define comes from Latin parts de- and finire, where finire means 'to finish' or 'limit' and is the same root found in final and finish. That's why to define a shape or line is to make its edges or limits clear.