attribute

[ verb uh-trib-yoot; noun a-truh-byoot ]

/ verb əˈtrɪb yut; noun ˈæ trəˌbyut /

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See synonyms for: attribute / attributed / attributes / attributing on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object), at·trib·ut·ed, at·trib·ut·ing.

to regard as resulting from a specified cause; consider as caused by something indicated (usually followed by to): She attributed his bad temper to ill health.

to consider as a quality or characteristic of the person, thing, group, etc., indicated: He attributed intelligence to his colleagues.

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.

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.

noun

something attributed as belonging to a person, thing, group, etc.; a quality, character, characteristic, or property: Sensitivity is one of his attributes.

something used as a symbol of a particular person, office, or status: A scepter is one of the attributes of a king.

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.

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.

Philosophy. (in the philosophy of Spinoza) any of the essential qualifications of God, thought and extension being the only ones known.Compare mode¹ (def. 4b).

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

Obsolete. distinguished character; reputation.

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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

synonym study for attribute

1. 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. 5. See quality.

OTHER WORDS FROM attribute

at·trib·ut·a·ble, adjectiveat·trib·ut·er, at·trib·u·tor, nounmis·at·trib·ute, verb, mis·at·trib·ut·ed, mis·at·trib·ut·ing.re·at·trib·ute, verb (used with object), re·at·trib·ut·ed, re·at·trib·ut·ing.

un·at·trib·ut·a·bly, adverbun·at·trib·ut·ed, adjectivewell-at·trib·ut·ed, adjective

Words nearby attribute

attractiveness, attractive nuisance, attractor, attrib., attributable, attribute, attributes, attribution, attribution theory, attributive, attributively

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use attribute in a sentence

According to this rule, as a result of the measurement, the state jumps into one of the states where the attribute in question has a well-defined value.
Schrödinger’s Cat When Nobody Is Looking - Issue 89: The Dark Side|Daniel Sudarsky|August 26, 2020|Nautilus
Dresses are certainly not taken as seriously as traditional sporting attire, despite their objectively positive attributes, like breathability and mobility.
In Praise of the Adventure Dress|Alison Van Houten|August 22, 2020|Outside Online
Spend time on research and check out the attributes available to your business category in Google My Business, and simply spend a bit of time searching your competitors to see how they’re adapting.
SEO in the second half of 2020: Five search opportunities to act on now|Jim Yu|August 17, 2020|Search Engine Watch
With this attribute, you don’t have to create separate feeds for each country in order to control which products show where.
Google makes it easier to control Shopping ads by country|Ginny Marvin|August 12, 2020|Search Engine Land

For example, the URL I inspected in Bing showed issues with meta language tags being missing and alt attributes for images missing.
Bing’s new URL Inspection tool: What it does and why to use it|Barry Schwartz|July 30, 2020|Search Engine Land
We attribute his successes or failures to the presence or lack of some special sauce that he does or does not possess.
The Dems’ Midterm Performance Anxiety|Michael Tomasky|October 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Sure, Nancy has the fish-out-of-water thing going on, but that attribute often defines Piper.
Orange Is the New Weeds: The Adventures of Jenji Kohan Across the 8th Dimension|Rich Goldstein, Emily Shire|August 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST
On the other hand, he has retained an attribute reminiscent of the other ex-fundies.
Frank Schaeffer, the Atheist Who Believes in God|Nick Tabor|August 3, 2014|DAILY BEAST
We attribute no special merit to a man for having served when all were serving.
The Real Memorial Day: Oliver Wendell Holmes's Salute To A Momentous American Anniversary|Malcolm Jones|May 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Military officials attribute the rise, to programs that have encouraged more victims to come forward and report their assaults.
Air Force Charges Ex-Informant With Lying About Her Rape|Jacob Siegel|May 1, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The Marshals were inclined to attribute their disgrace to the ill-will of Berthier and not to the temper of Napoleon.
Napoleon's Marshals|R. P. Dunn-Pattison
This I attribute to the potash being in a little more caustic condition than when recrystallised with iodine.
Notes and Queries, Number 177, March 19, 1853|Various
They attribute this in part to the excellence of their soil and partly to the abundance of birds and yellow jackets.
Tobacco; Its History, Varieties, Culture, Manufacture and Commerce|E. R. Billings.
At first geologists were disposed to attribute all the phenomena of mountain-folding to the progressive cooling of the earth.
Outlines of the Earth's History|Nathaniel Southgate Shaler
To attribute to Douglas lack of 'strength of purpose' is to miss the whole significance of his career.
King Robert the Bruce|A. F. Murison

British Dictionary definitions for attribute

attribute

verb (əˈtrɪbjuːt)

(tr usually foll by to) to regard as belonging (to), produced (by), or resulting (from); ascribe (to)to attribute a painting to Picasso

noun (ˈætrɪˌbjuːt)

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

an object accepted as belonging to a particular office or position

grammar

an adjective or adjectival phrase
an attributive adjective

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

Derived forms of attribute

attributable, adjectiveattributer or attributor, nounattribution (ˌætrɪˈbjuːʃən), noun

Word Origin for attribute

C15: from Latin attribuere to associate with, from tribuere to give

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

attribute

Origin of attribute

synonym study for attribute

OTHER WORDS FROM attribute

Words nearby attribute

Words related to attribute

How to use attribute in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for attribute

Derived forms of attribute

Word Origin for attribute