describe
Americanverb (used with object)
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describes,
present (3rd person singular)
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described,
past participle, past
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describing
present participle
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to tell or depict in written or spoken words; give an account of.
He described the accident very carefully.
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to pronounce, as by a designating term, phrase, or the like; label.
There are few people who may be described as geniuses.
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to indicate; be a sign of; denote.
Conceit, in many cases, describes a state of serious emotional insecurity.
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to represent or delineate by a picture or figure.
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Geometry. to draw or trace the outline of.
to describe an arc.
verb
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to give an account or representation of in words
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to pronounce or label
he has been described as a genius
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to draw a line or figure, such as a circle
Synonym Usage
Describe, narrate agree in the idea of giving an account of something. To describe is to convey in words the appearance, nature, attributes, etc., of something. The word often implies vividness of personal observation: to describe a scene, an event. To narrate is to recount the occurrence of something, usually by giving the details of an event or events in the order of their happening. Narrate thus applies only to that which happens over time: to narrate an incident.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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describabilitynoun
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describernoun
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undescribablenessnoun
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overdescribeverb (used with object)
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predescribeverb (used with object)
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redescribeverb (used with object)
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describableadjective
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nondescribableadjective
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self-describedadjective
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undescribableadjective
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undescribedadjective
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well-describedadjective
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describablyadverb
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undescribablyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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describesimple
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describessimple
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have describedperfect
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has describedperfect
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am describingprogressive
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are describingprogressive
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is describingprogressive
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have been describingperfect progressive
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has been describingperfect progressive
Past
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describedsimple
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had describedperfect
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was describingprogressive
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were describingprogressive
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had been describingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of describe
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English describen, from Latin dēscrībere, equivalent to dē- de- + scrībere “to write”
Explanation
To describe is to report details about something either out loud or in writing. "Since we can't come to Paris with you, please describe it in your letter!" Describe is from the Latin word describere which means "to write down." When you describe something, you're "da" scribe, the person writing things down! Writing teachers love to have students describe, using lots of details using the five senses and figurative language. It doesn't have to be written down, though — you can also describe that gold dress you saw to your friend on the phone. Or you can describe a circle, by sketching it out with a stick in the sand.
Vocabulary lists containing describe
The Language of Standardized Tests, List 1
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PARCC: Language of the Test (Grade7)
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Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
One obstacle was that previous theory could only reliably describe frequencies below 1 Hz.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 6, 2026
“I describe it like having blurry vision your whole life and not realizing how clearly you can see, until you put glasses on,” Marquez said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 4, 2026
“I don’t believe it is accurate to describe this as a significant increase,” Katayama said at a news conference on Friday.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 4, 2026
Numerous human rights groups, as well as the United Nations, describe the conflict as a war.
From Salon ● Sep. 3, 2026
He couldn’t describe these adventures if he hadn’t lived them.
From "Nim’s Island" by Wendy Orr
Passenger on British Airways mayday flight describes fear and shout of 'I don't want to die'
From BBC ● Sep. 5, 2026
In 2017, Epstein’s lawyer handled the paperwork for her to get divorced, and she describes the years after that as an effort to get out.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 5, 2026
This behavior arises from the topology of their electronic bands, which describes broad features of the quantum structure of electronic states that are protected by crystal symmetries.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 5, 2026
MapQuest — a navigation app that describes itself as the “OG of online mapping” — shot up to the top of Apple’s charts for free apps as more people downloaded it.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026
The FBI describes him as a "dirty rat" and a "snappy dresser."
From Nazi Saboteurs by Samantha Seiple
Its design and initial results are described in a new paper published in the journal Nuclear Fusion.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 6, 2026
The scene of the tragedy was described as "hidden away" from the main woodland in the Wyrley and Essington Branch Canal Local Nature Reserve.
From BBC ● Sep. 6, 2026
Defensive line coach Giff Smith described the acquisition of Garrett, who amassed an NFL-season record 23 sacks last season, as “a grand slam.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 6, 2026
Rescuers found two more people alive on Saturday, joining two saved the day before in what have been described as miraculous tales of survival.
From Barron's ● Sep. 6, 2026
I don’t know why, but when Theo had described the pension office to me I’d pictured it like a library, a place we could walk around and peruse books and papers.
From "The Brightwood Code" by Monica Hesse
If the victim isn’t convinced, try describing a similar fraud instead and let the victim see the red flags from a more detached perspective.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 6, 2026
After describing a stint on the injured list as “unlikely but not impossible” on Thursday, manager Dave Roberts said Friday that he was “hopeful, but I wouldn’t say confident,” that Ohtani would avoid the IL.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 5, 2026
Sayers also expressed concern about this year's seal pup season, describing it as one of the worst on record.
From BBC ● Sep. 5, 2026
The recording was met with disbelief in the South American country, with some describing the messaging as callous and inhumane.
From Barron's ● Sep. 3, 2026
Some similar dinners, if there were dinners that could be considered similar, might have calligraphed menus on sturdy paper describing each course in great detail, or perhaps just listing an intriguing title or name.
From "The Night Circus" by Erin Morgenstern
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
