defining

American  

[dih-fahy-ning] / dɪˈfaɪ nɪŋ /

adjective

1. decisive; critically important.

   Taking a course in architecture was a defining turn in her life.

---

Other Word Forms

• nondefining adjective
• self-defining adjective

Example Sentences

The sight of the newborn and her mother being winched to safety by helicopter amid the deluged landscape became one of the defining images of the Mozambique floods of 2000 – the country's worst ever.

From BBC

Burna Boy, a defining figure in this movement since its breakthrough, remains one of its most prominent ambassadors, with his album win cementing his influential status.

From BBC

The biggest is the difficulty of defining “middle class.”

From The Wall Street Journal

“On one hand, it can be a defining aspect of our band and our lives,” Griffin said of the fire and its destruction.

From Los Angeles Times

Scientists have uncovered evidence that two defining features of cancer are driven by the same underlying molecular process.

From Science Daily