View synonyms for example

example

[ ig-zam-puhl, -zahm- ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

one of a number of things, or a part of something, taken to show the character of the whole:
This painting is an example of his early work.
Synonyms: specimen, sample
a pattern or model, as of something to be imitated or avoided:
to set a good example.
Synonyms: lead, precedent, template, standard, pattern, paradigm, model, ideal, exemplar
an instance serving for illustration; a representative case:
The case histories gave carefully detailed examples of this disease.
Synonyms: representative, prototype, instance, illustration, exemplification, exemplar, case
an instance illustrating a rule or method, as a mathematical problem proposed for solution.
an instance, especially of punishment, serving as a warning to others:
Public executions were meant to be examples to the populace.
a precedent; parallel case:
an action without example.

verb (used with object)

, ex·am·pled, ex·am·pling.

Rare. to give or be an example of; exemplify (used in the passive).

example

/ ɪɡˈzɑːmpəl /

noun

a specimen or instance that is typical of the group or set of which it forms part; sample
a person, action, thing, etc, that is worthy of imitation; pattern
you must set an example to the younger children
a precedent, illustration of a principle, or model
an example in a maths book
a punishment or the recipient of a punishment serving or intended to serve as a warning
the headmaster made an example of him
for example
as an illustration; for instance

verb

tr; now usually passive to present an example of; exemplify

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Word History and Origins

Origin of example¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English exa(u)mple, from Middle French example, from Latin exemplum, akin to eximere “to take out,” from ex- ex- ¹ + emere “to buy,” originally “to take”; replacing Middle English exemple, from Latin, as above

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Word History and Origins

Origin of example¹

C14: from Old French, from Latin exemplum pattern, from eximere to take out, from ex- ¹+ emere to purchase

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Idioms and Phrases

see for example ; make an example of ; set an example .

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Synonym Study

Example, sample, specimen refer to an individual phenomenon taken as representative of a type, or to a part representative of the whole. Example is used of an object, condition, etc., that is assumed to illustrate a certain principle or standard: a good example of baroque architecture. Sample refers to a small portion of a substance or to a single representative of a group or type that is intended to show what the rest of the substance or the group is like: a sample of yarn. Specimen usually suggests that the “sample” chosen is intended to serve a scientific or technical purpose: a blood specimen; zoological specimens. See ideal. See case ¹.

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

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