Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

characterization

American  
[kar-ik-ter-uh-zey-shuhn, -truh-zey-] / ˌkær ɪk tər əˈzeɪ ʃən, -trəˈzeɪ- /

noun

  1. portrayal; description.

    the actor's characterization of a politician.

    Synonyms:
    delineation, depiction, representation
  2. the act of characterizing or describing the individual quality of a person or thing.

  3. the creation and convincing representation of fictitious characters, as in a literary work.


characterization British  
/ ˌkærɪktəraɪˈzeɪʃən /

noun

  1. description of character, traits, etc

  2. the act of characterizing

"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

Other Word Forms

  • recharacterization noun
  • self-characterization noun

Etymology

Origin of characterization

1560–70; < Medieval Latin charactērizāt ( us ) marked (past participle of charactērizāre to characterize; -ate 1 ) + Latin -iōn- -ion

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.

Identifying materials that enable this rapid ion movement has traditionally required time-consuming synthesis and experimental characterization.

From Science Daily

Aswath Damodaran, the so-called ‘dean of valuation,’ said a popular characterization of a dystopian AI future of displacement and disruption was implausible.

From MarketWatch

Michael has disputed the company’s characterization of the offer.

From The Wall Street Journal

Ms. Manich’s detailed directing made the story and the play within it clear and created individual characterizations for the ensemble members as well as the principals.

From The Wall Street Journal

The association rejects ByteDance’s characterization of the infringement as unauthorized use of intellectual property by its users.

From Los Angeles Times