describe
VerbOpen English WordNet
Verb (4)describes, described, describing
- give a description of“He drew an elaborate plan of attack”Synonyms: depictdrawMore general set forth, expoundMore specific sketch, delineate, represent
- to give an account or representation of in words“Discreet Italian police described it in a manner typically continental”Synonyms: reportaccountMore general inform
- make a mark or lines on a surface“draw a line”“trace the outline of a figure in the sand”Synonyms: tracedrawlinedelineateMore general markMore specific write, construct, circumscribe, inscribeSimilar draw
- identify as in botany or biology, for exampleSynonyms: identifydiscoverkeykey outdistinguishnameMore general determine, setInvolves classify, class
What does it mean? Question 1 of today’s quiz
Translations
Verb to represent in words
- Spanish
- describir
- French
- décrire
- German
- beschreiben
- Italian
- descrivere
- Portuguese
- descrever
- Turkish
- tanımlamak
- Russian
- опи́сывать opísyvatʹ
- Arabic
- وَصَفَ waṣafa
- Chinese
- 描述 miáoshù
- Dutch
- omschrijven
24 more languages
- Polish
- opisać
- Swedish
- beskriva
- Greek
- περιγράφω perigráfo
- Korean
- 서술하다 seosulhada
- Indonesian
- menggambarkan
- Vietnamese
- mô tả
- Hungarian
- leír
- Portuguese (PT)
- descrever
- Chinese (Trad.)
- 描述 miáoshù
- Albanian
- përshkruaj
- Catalan
- descriure
- Czech
- popisovat
- Danish
- beskrive
- Esperanto
- priskribi
- Estonian
- kirjeldama
- Finnish
- kuvailla
- Hebrew
- תיאר te'ér
- Icelandic
- lýsa
- Lithuanian
- aprašyti
- Norwegian
- beskrive
- Romanian
- descrie
- Serbo-Croatian
- opisati
- Slovak
- opísať
- Welsh
- disgrifio
The main translation for each meaning, from the langtolang.com multilingual dictionary. Each word links to its full entry there.
Webster's Dictionary (1913)
Origin: L. describere, descriptum; de- + scribere to write: cf. OE. descriven, OF. descrivre, F. décrire. See Scribe, and cf. Descry.
1. To represent by drawing; to draw a plan of; to delineate; to trace or mark out; as, to describe a circle by the compasses; a torch waved about the head in such a way as to describe a circle.
2. To represent by words written or spoken; to give an account of; to make known to others by words or signs; as, the geographer describes countries and cities.
3. To distribute into parts, groups, or classes; to mark off; to class. obsolete
Passed through the land, and described it by cities into seven parts in a book.— Josh. xviii. 9.
Synonyms: To set forth; represent; delineate; relate; recount; narrate; express; explain; depict; portray; chracterize.
To use the faculty of describing; to give a description; as, Milton describes with uncommon force and beauty.
Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913), from GCIDE 0.54