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

This is a month that will go a long way to defining City's season.

From BBC • Apr. 4, 2026

“Job stability has become the defining feature of today’s workforce,” they wrote.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 3, 2026

This discovery fills that gap and provides direct evidence of when these defining features first appeared.

From Science Daily • Apr. 3, 2026

Nonetheless, the U.A.E., like the rest of the Gulf region, had long tried to avoid defining itself as a combatant.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 1, 2026

What excited her about her achievement was its design, the pure geometry and the defining uncertainty which reflected, she thought, a modern sensibility.

From "Atonement" by Ian McEwan