classify

[ klas-uh-fahy ]

/ ˈklæs əˌfaɪ /

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verb (used with object), clas·si·fied, clas·si·fy·ing.

to arrange or organize by classes; order according to class.

to assign a classification to (information, a document, etc.).Compare classification(def 5).

to limit the availability of (information, a document, etc.) to authorized persons.

Nearby words

classified, classified ad, classified advertising, classifieds, classifier, classify, classis, classism, classless, classmate, classon

Origin of classify

1790–1800; < Latin classi(s) class + -fy

SYNONYMS FOR classify

1 class, rank, rate, categorize, group.

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Related forms

clas·si·fi·a·ble, adjectivemis·clas·si·fy, verb (used with object), mis·clas·si·fied, mis·clas·si·fy·ing.non·clas·si·fi·a·ble, adjectiveo·ver·clas·si·fy, verb (used with object), o·ver·clas·si·fied, o·ver·clas·si·fy·ing.

pre·clas·si·fy, verb (used with object), pre·clas·si·fied, pre·clas·si·fy·ing.un·clas·si·fi·a·ble, adjectiveun·clas·si·fi·a·ble·ness, nounun·clas·si·fi·a·bly, adverbun·clas·si·fy·ing, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for classify

While some may classify that inactivity as laziness or indifference, Brown suggests the contrary.
Deepwater Horizon: Life Drowning in Oil|Samuel Fragoso|November 2, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The end goal is to classify what happens when the memory goes awry.
DARPA’s $40 Million Plan to Save Soldiers’ Brains|Dr. Anand Veeravagu, MD, Michael Zhang|July 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
There is a debate among experts about how to classify and define the effects of a lithium-ion battery meltdown.
Flight 370 Was Carrying 440 Pounds of Dangerous Batteries|Clive Irving|May 1, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The bill has even grants no longer existent agencies the power to classify secrets.
Japan’s new Secrets Bill Threatens To Muzzle The Press and Whistleblowers|Jake Adelstein, Nathalie-Kyoko Stucky|November 29, 2013|DAILY BEAST

In short, the Greens are asking the court to classify for-profit corporations as having religious consciences.
Is Forced Religious Belief Coming to an Employer Near You?|Jamelle Bouie|November 27, 2013|DAILY BEAST
It is impossible to classify logically in any simple scheme all the possible forms of expression.
The Mind and Its Education|George Herbert Betts
To classify it is not particularly easy; and I doubt, myself, whether any classification is necessary.
Essays in English Literature, 1780-1860|George Saintsbury
Get a militia system ready which will classify the whole population, and bring it into the fight as fast as it's needed.
Miss Ravenel's conversion from secession to loyalty|J. W. de Forest
He also attempted to classify the stories in a certain number of recurring formula or plots.
Myth, Ritual And Religion, Vol. 2 (of 2)|Andrew Lang
In their minuteness and variety they almost baffle the attempts of naturalists to classify them.
The Ocean World:|Louis Figuier

British Dictionary definitions for classify

classify

/ (ˈklæsɪˌfaɪ) /

verb -fies, -fying or -fied (tr)

to arrange or order by classes; categorize

government to declare (information, documents, etc) of possible aid to an enemy and therefore not available to people outside a restricted group

Derived Formsclassifiable, adjectiveclassifier, noun

Word Origin for classify

C18: back formation from classification

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

classify

verb (used with object), clas·si·fied, clas·si·fy·ing.

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Nearby words

Origin of classify

Examples from the Web for classify

British Dictionary definitions for classify

classify

verb -fies, -fying or -fied (tr)

Word Origin for classify