ascribe
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to credit or assign, as to a cause or source; attribute; impute.
The alphabet is usually ascribed to the Phoenicians.
-
to attribute or think of as belonging, as a quality or characteristic.
They ascribed courage to me for something I did out of sheer panic.
verb
-
to credit or assign, as to a particular origin or period
to ascribe parts of a play to Shakespeare
-
to attribute as a quality; consider as belonging to
to ascribe beauty to youth
Usage
Ascribe is sometimes wrongly used where subscribe is meant: I do not subscribe (not ascribe ) to this view
Related Words
See attribute.
Other Word Forms
- ascribable adjective
- unascribed adjective
Etymology
Origin of ascribe
1400–50; late Middle English < Latin ascrībere, equivalent to a- a- 5 + scrībere to scribe 2; replacing Middle English ascrive < Middle French. See shrive
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.
Like everyone I spoke to, Tim and Star ascribe Minneapolis’ successful mobilization to lessons learned during that time.
From Slate • Feb. 11, 2026
Analysts ascribe that partly to higher inflation and larger federal budget deficits but also to hopes for stronger economic growth—driven by private-sector investment in areas such as AI infrastructure and renewable energy.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 7, 2025
“We would ascribe that to data which reinforces the probability the Fed will cut rates in December, but was not so bad that you worry the economy is slowing precipitously,” he said via phone.
From MarketWatch • Dec. 3, 2025
We ascribe $3 billion of revenue to Amgen’s GLP-1 drug, MariTide, in Phase 3 clinical trials, which we view as potentially differentiated.
From Barron's • Sep. 26, 2025
The system described how to categorize living things on the earth, but did not ascribe an underlying logic to its organization.
From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee
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.
