characterizing

verb

Definition of characterizingnext
present participle of characterize
1
as in describing
to point out the chief quality or qualities of an individual or group how would you characterize the mission of this environmental organization?

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance
2
as in distinguishing
to be an important feature of an unsightly rash characterizes chicken pox

Synonyms & Similar Words

Examples Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for characterizing
  1. describing
  2. distinguishing
  3. portraying
  4. defining
Verb
  • Di Santo was describing the amount of work needed to gather information to use in carbon reporting, including the need to track the annual mileage of vehicles.
    Jon McGowan, Forbes, 4 Oct. 2024
  • The Children's Museum of Indianapolis shared a video to Instagram on Thursday where an employee walks around the museum describing exhibits using niche Gen Z internet slang.
    Katie Wiseman, The Indianapolis Star, 4 Oct. 2024
Definition of describing
Verb
  • By integrating financial services, companies can offer a more holistic experience, distinguishing themselves from competitors.
    Zareef Hamid, Forbes, 3 Oct. 2024
  • One key distinguishing factor is the presence of a fever.
    Katia Hetter, CNN, 2 Oct. 2024
Definition of distinguishing
Verb
  • Anti-Voodoo rhetoric stoked fears of Black people in New Orleans and other Southern cities, portraying the religions as evil instigators of slave rebellions.
    Aisha M. Beliso-De Jesús / Made by History, TIME, 4 Oct. 2024
  • In the aftermath, the white planter class weaponized the religious aspects of the rebellion, portraying Black people as savage, predatory, and dangerous.
    Aisha M. Beliso-De Jesús / Made by History, TIME, 4 Oct. 2024
Definition of portraying
Verb
  • Finally, set yourself up for success in the new year by defining clear financial goals.
    Kimberly Wilson, Essence, 4 Oct. 2024
  • Sign up for Notepad by Tom Warren, a weekly newsletter uncovering the secrets and strategy behind Microsoft’s era-defining bets on AI, gaming, and computing.
    Tom Warren, The Verge, 2 Oct. 2024
Definition of defining
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Thesaurus Entries Near characterizing

characterizes

characterizing

characterless

See More Nearby Entries 

Cite this Entry

“Characterizing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/characterizing. Accessed 1 Dec. 2024.

Copy Citation

Share

More from Merriam-Webster on characterizing

Nglish: Translation of characterizing for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of characterizing for Arabic Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See All

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

Plural and Possessive Names: A Guide

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See All

Popular in Wordplay

See All

Terroir, Oenophile, & Magnum: Ten Words About Wine

8 Words for Lesser-Known Musical Instruments

10 Words from Taylor Swift Songs (Merriam's Version)

9 Superb Owl Words

15 Words That Used to Mean Something Different
See All

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Word Game Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
sweet smart pug puppy dog sitting in front of blackboard with chalk question marks
Commonly Confused Words Quiz Vol. 3 Do you have a (flare/flair) for choosing the righ...