classifier

American  

[klas-uh-fahy-er] / ˈklæs əˌfaɪ ər /

noun

1. a person or thing that classifies.

2. a device for separating solids of different characteristics by controlled rates of settling.

3. Grammar. (in Chinese, Japanese, and other languages) a word or morpheme that corresponds to a semantic class of nouns and regularly accompanies any noun of that class in certain syntactic constructions, such as those of numeration.

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Etymology

Origin of classifier

First recorded in 1810–20; classify + -er ¹

Example Sentences

One suspects that Lewis, an ardent classifier well-versed in Carolus Linnaeus’ “Systema Naturae,” would have been thrilled to present his own findings at the society.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 16, 2026

"A liver fibrosis classifier is distinct from a cancer classifier. This is a unique, disease-specific test built from the same underlying platform."

From Science Daily • Mar. 6, 2026

"My team is currently developing a tear-protein-based classifier that can differentiate brain cancer patients from healthy volunteers with high levels of accuracy," she said.

From BBC • Sep. 28, 2025

An algorithm known as a classifier automatically categorizes content, allowing Character.AI to identify words that might violate its rules and filter conversations.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 25, 2025

Mendel, as we shall see, was an instinctual gardener—a breeder of plants, a counter of seeds, an isolator of traits; Darwin was a garden digger—a classifier of plants, an organizer of specimens, a taxonomist.

From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee