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View synonyms for description

description

[ dih-skrip-shuhn ]

noun

  1. a statement, picture in words, or account that describes; descriptive representation.
  2. the act or method of describing.
  3. sort; kind; variety:

    dogs of every description.

    Synonyms: ilk, condition, character, nature, species

  4. Geometry. the act or process of describing a figure.


description

/ dɪˈskrɪpʃən /

noun

  1. a statement or account that describes; representation in words
  2. the act, process, or technique of describing
  3. sort, kind, or variety

    reptiles of every description

  4. geometry the act of drawing a line or figure, such as an arc
  5. philosophy a noun phrase containing a predicate that may replace a name as the subject of a sentence


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Other Words From

  • prede·scription noun
  • rede·scription noun
  • self-de·scription noun

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Word History and Origins

Origin of description1

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English descripcioun, from Latin dēscrīptiōn-, stem of dēscrīptiō, from dēscrīpt(us) “described” (past participle of dēscrībere “to copy, draw, transcribe”; describe ) + -iō -ion

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Idioms and Phrases

see beggar description .

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Example Sentences

Perhaps lording over goblins is the right description after all.

Baby cigarette “No worry of cancer with this cigarette costume,” the description for this gem reads.

But one description was abhorrent on a level far above politics: “Aspergery.”

And, in truth, many of the major political figures fit that description.

Since he matched the rough description of the killer in the Genovese case, he was questioned about it.

Each picture bore a label, giving a true description of the once-honoured gem.

The king was struck with horror at the description I had given him of those terrible engines, and the proposal I had made.

Also there is a description of Bampton, which once thrilled the readers of the Tiverton Gazette.

This habit of scribble may persist after a child attempts a linear description of the parts of an object.

In the yard, which was kept scrupulously neat, were flowers and plants of every description which flourishes in South Louisiana.

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

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.

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