attribute

American  

[uh-trib-yoot, a-truh-byoot] / əˈtrɪb jut, ˈæ trəˌbjut /

verb (used with object)

• attributes,
  present (3rd person singular)
• attributed,
  past participle,  past
• attributing
  present participle

1. to regard as resulting from a specified cause; consider as caused by something indicated (usually followed byto ).

   She attributed his bad temper to ill health.

2. to consider as a quality or characteristic of the person, thing, group, etc., indicated.

   He attributed intelligence to his colleagues.

3. to consider as made by the one indicated, especially with strong evidence but in the absence of conclusive proof.

   to attribute a painting to an artist.

4. to regard as produced by or originating in the time, period, place, etc., indicated; credit; assign.

   to attribute a work to a particular period; to attribute a discovery to a particular country.

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noun

• attributes
  plural

1. something attributed as belonging to a person, thing, group, etc.; a quality, character, characteristic, or property.

   Sensitivity is one of his attributes.

2. something used as a symbol of a particular person, office, or status.

   A scepter is one of the attributes of a king.

3. Grammar. a word or phrase that is syntactically subordinate to another and serves to limit, identify, particularize, describe, or supplement the meaning of the form with which it is in construction. In the red house, red is an attribute of house.

4. Fine Arts. an object associated with or symbolic of a character, office, or quality, as the keys of St. Peter or the lion skin of Hercules.

5. Philosophy. (in the philosophy of Spinoza) any of the essential qualifications of God, thought and extension being the only ones known.

6. Logic. (in a proposition) that which is affirmed or denied concerning the subject.

7. Obsolete. distinguished character; reputation.

attribute British  

/ ˌætrɪˈbjuːʃən /

verb

1. to regard as belonging (to), produced (by), or resulting (from); ascribe (to)

   to attribute a painting to Picasso

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noun

1. a property, quality, or feature belonging to or representative of a person or thing

2. an object accepted as belonging to a particular office or position

3. grammar

   1. an adjective or adjectival phrase

   2. an attributive adjective

4. logic the property, quality, or feature that is affirmed or denied concerning the subject of a proposition

Synonym Usage

Attribute, ascribe, impute imply definite origin. Attribute and ascribe are often used interchangeably, to imply that something originates with a definite person or from a definite cause. Ascribe, however, has neutral implications; whereas, possibly because of an association with tribute, attribute is coming to have a complimentary connotation: to ascribe an accident to carelessness; to attribute one's success to a friend's encouragement. Impute has gained uncomplimentary connotations, and usually means to accuse or blame someone or something as a cause or origin: to impute an error to him. See quality.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• attributer
  noun
• attribution
  noun
• attributor
  noun
• misattribute
  verb
• reattribute
  verb (used with object)
• attributable
  adjective
• unattributed
  adjective
• well-attributed
  adjective
• unattributably
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• attributes
  plural

Participles

• attributing
  present
• attributed
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• attribute
  simple
• attributes
  simple
• have attributed
  perfect
• has attributed
  perfect
• am attributing
  progressive
• are attributing
  progressive
• is attributing
  progressive
• have been attributing
  perfect progressive
• has been attributing
  perfect progressive

Past

• attributed
  simple
• had attributed
  perfect
• was attributing
  progressive
• were attributing
  progressive
• had been attributing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will attribute
  simple
• will have attributed
  perfect
• will be attributing
  progressive
• will have been attributing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of attribute

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Latin attribūtus “allotted, assigned, imputed to” (past participle of attribuere ), equivalent to at- “toward” + tribū- (stem of tribuere “to assign (to tribes), classify, ascribe”; see at-, tribe) + -tus past participle suffix

Explanation

An attribute is a quality or characteristic given to a person, group, or some other thing. Your best attribute might be your willingness to help others, like when you stopped traffic so the duck family could cross the street. Attribute comes from the Latin verb attribuere, which is made up the prefix ad, meaning "to," and tribuere meaning "give or bestow." As a verb, to attribute is to give credit, like if you attribute the A on your test to all that hard studying. In Greek and Roman mythology an attribute will often stand in for a character such as Zeus's lightning bolt or Poseidon's trident.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

attribute attributes attributed attributing

Staff on the 9/11 Commission objected to the conclusion that Bayoumi was "unlikely" to have been involved with extremists, prompting the report to attribute this to "our investigators who have dealt directly with him"

From BBC ● Sep. 7, 2026

The study, however, didn’t attribute the lengthening delays to flaws in the single-payer system, but rather to the increasing complexity of cancer care and changes in hospital practices.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 3, 2026

Klein also points out that despite the uptick in bond yields that many commentators attribute to unsustainable fiscal deficits has caused “so far zero evidence of any looming slowdown in U.S. economic data.”

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 1, 2026

Sales at nonstore retailers fell by 2.2%, which many analysts attribute to Amazon holding its Prime Day sales event in June instead of July.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026

Here lies the problem: The great master known as Johannes Vermeer painted, in truth, only twenty-six of the thirty five paintings we now attribute to him.

From "Chasing Vermeer" by Blue Balliett

The piece quotes one researcher who attributes the exit of men from the workforce to a growing failure of men to “launch” in their 20s and 30s.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2026

His other five attributes can include “reflective and future focused” and a “global citizen.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026

One REC typically represents the renewable attributes of 1 megawatt-hour of renewable generation.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 10, 2026

Characters disappear, or have their attributes and actions assigned to different characters.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 6, 2026

She spent whole days blending oils, making adjustments to achieve specific fragrances and attributes.

From "Educated" by Tara Westover

He attributed this to his longtime desire to “bring people from all backgrounds and cultures together” via his music and performances.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2026

Lee Glen, owner of trading card stores Rocket's Hideout in York and Selby, said Pokémon cards had "exploded" in the last five years, which he largely attributed to the hobby being "multi-generational".

From BBC ● Sep. 15, 2026

The online collective Antibot4navalny first attributed the deepfakes to Matryoshka due to their familiar pattern of distribution and amplification across social media.

From Barron's ● Sep. 14, 2026

Until now, researchers have generally attributed much of that shedding to rapid weight loss, since these medications lower blood sugar and reduce appetite.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 13, 2026

This he attributed to the fact that the people had become conscious of their needs and their own strength.

From "The House of the Spirits: A Novel" by Isabel Allende

While Netflix does not offer a free service, the streaming giant in October 2022 began offering a lower-priced ad-supported option, later attributing the offering with a boost in subscription counts.

From Barron's ● Aug. 5, 2026

“The money lies in the RBIs,” Kent said while attributing that quote to Lasorda during his speech.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 26, 2026

After heat-related deaths reached a peak of 645 in 2023, they declined to 405 in 2025 - with many experts attributing part of the decline to the policy changes.

From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026

“I’m not attributing who said what. It’s for my general knowledge.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026

He had a habit of attributing all of Bunny’s faults indirectly to her—his laziness, his bad humors, his lapses of taste.

From "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt

Related Words

• aspect
• characteristic
• facet
• idiosyncrasy
• peculiarity
• quality
• quirk
• trait
• virtue