Library / English Dictionary

CHARACTERISE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 I. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Describe or portray the character or the qualities or peculiarities of

Example:

This poem can be characterized as a lament for a dead lover

Synonyms:

characterise; characterize; qualify

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Hypernyms (to "characterise" is one way to...):

remember; think of (keep in mind for attention or consideration)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "characterise"):

differentiate; distinguish; mark (be a distinctive feature, attribute, or trait; sometimes in a very positive sense)

stamp (reveal clearly as having a certain character)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s somebody
Something ----s somebody
Something ----s something

Derivation:

character (a characteristic property that defines the apparent individual nature of something)

character (a formal recommendation by a former employer to a potential future employer describing the person's qualifications and dependability)

characterisation (the act of describing distinctive characteristics or essential features)

characterisation (a graphic or vivid verbal description)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Be characteristic of

Example:

What characterizes a Venetian painting?

Synonyms:

characterise; characterize

Classified under:

Verbs of being, having, spatial relations

Hypernyms (to "characterise" is one way to...):

differentiate; distinguish; mark (be a distinctive feature, attribute, or trait; sometimes in a very positive sense)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "characterise"):

individuate (give individual character to)

define (determine the nature of)

Sentence frames:

Something ----s somebody
Something ----s something

Derivation:

character (a characteristic property that defines the apparent individual nature of something)

Credits

 Context examples: 

Electropositive chemical elements characterised by ductility, malleability, luster, and conductance of heat and electricity.

(Metal, NCI Thesaurus)

Kringle domains are characterised by a triple loop, 3-disulphide bridge structure, whose conformation is defined by a number of hydrogen bonds and small pieces of anti-parallel beta-sheet.

(Kringle Domain, NCI Thesaurus)

White matter changes first described in children with leukemia, associated with radiation and chemotherapy injury, often associated with methotrexate; pathologically characterised by diffuse reactive astrocytosis with multiple areas of necrotic foci without inflammation.

(Leukoencephalopathy, NCI Thesaurus)

The results provide unprecedented detail of our genetic history, and highlights how it is characterised by multiple layers of complexity.

(Global human genome study reveals our complex evolutionary history, University of Cambridge)

A leukemia characterised by the absence of leukemic cells in the peripheral blood. — 2003

(Aleukemic Leukemia, NCI Thesaurus)

A hot, metallic, Earth-sized planet with a density similar to Mercury – situated 339 million light-years away — has been detected and characterised by a global team of astronomers.

(Mercury Not as Rare as Previously Thought, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

These materials are characterised by weak mechanical forces between the planes of their crystal structure.

(‘Magnetic graphene’ switches between insulator and conductor, University of Cambridge)

The study characterised the genetic underpinnings of the human plasma ‘proteome’, identifying nearly 2,000 genetic associations with almost 1,500 proteins.

(Scientists create ‘genetic atlas’ of proteins in human blood, University of Cambridge)

I know the military neatness which characterises you.

(The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Faithfulness and willingness characterised his toil.

(White Fang, by Jack London)