Showing results for "defining"

• present participle of define.

defining

American  

[dih-fahy-ning] / dɪˈfaɪ nɪŋ /

adjective

1. decisive; critically important.

   Taking a course in architecture was a defining turn in her life.

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Other Word Forms

• nondefining
  adjective
• self-defining
  adjective

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Explanation

Something defining is essential to what something is. A defining moment in your life helps makes you what you are. In the dictionary, definitions tell you what words mean, and the similar word defining has to do with what things are too. The defining characteristic of a chair is that you sit on it. The defining feature of food is you can eat it. People have defining features too: if you went to a summer camp and had an amazing time, it could be a defining time in your life. Defining things helps shape and mold us.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

defining

It became one of the defining images of the protests, and propelled Melinn to nationwide fame.

From BBC ● Oct. 30, 2026

Building on their earlier work, they used a self-similar form of Einstein's equations to represent the standard cosmological model as a rest point, a mathematical state in which the system's defining variables remain unchanged.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 29, 2026

“Sir Patrick brought Professor Charles Xavier to life with extraordinary grace, intelligence and humanity, defining the character for generations of fans, from ‘X-Men’ to ‘Logan’ to ‘Avengers: Doomsday,’” Marvel Studios said in statement.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 29, 2026

The department filed a long court brief defending its tactics, saying a law defining the statute of limitations for most felony crimes allows prosecutors to initiate a case by criminal information.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 28, 2026

I told her that I was taught never to use the word you are defining in its definition and that she ought to think of a substitute word for letter if she is defining it.

From "The View From Saturday" by E.L. Konigsburg

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