design

[ dih-zahyn ]

/ dɪˈzaɪn /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR design ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object)

to prepare the preliminary sketch or the plans for (a work to be executed), especially to plan the form and structure of: to design a new bridge.

to plan and fashion artistically or skillfully.

to intend for a definite purpose: a scholarship designed for foreign students.

to form or conceive in the mind; contrive; plan: The prisoner designed an intricate escape.

to assign in thought or intention; purpose: He designed to be a doctor.

Obsolete. to mark out, as by a sign; indicate.

verb (used without object)

to make drawings, preliminary sketches, or plans.

to plan and fashion the form and structure of an object, work of art, decorative scheme, etc.

noun

an outline, sketch, or plan, as of the form and structure of a work of art, an edifice, or a machine to be executed or constructed.

organization or structure of formal elements in a work of art; composition.

the combination of details or features of a picture, building, etc.; the pattern or motif of artistic work: the design on a bracelet.

the art of designing: a school of design.

a plan or project: a design for a new process.

a plot or intrigue, especially an underhand, deceitful, or treacherous one: His political rivals formulated a design to unseat him.

designs, a hostile or aggressive project or scheme having evil or selfish motives: He had designs on his partner's stock.

intention; purpose; end.

adaptation of means to a preconceived end.

Nearby words

desiderata, desiderate, desiderative, desideratum, desiderium, design, designate, designated, designated driver, designated employment, designated hitter

Origin of design

1350–1400; Middle English designen < Latin dēsignāre to mark out. See de-, sign

Related forms

out·de·sign, verb (used with object)o·ver·de·sign, verbpre·de·sign, verb (used with object)re·de·sign, verb

self-de·sign, nounun·der·de·sign, verb (used with object)

Synonym study

5. See intend. 13. See plan.

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

Examples from the Web for design

An F-35 was destroyed on takeoff earlier in the year when a design flaw in its Pratt & Whitney F135 engine sparked a fire.
New U.S. Stealth Jet Can’t Fire Its Gun Until 2019|Dave Majumdar|December 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But the F-35 has been plagued with massive delays and cost overruns—mostly due to design defects and software issues.
New U.S. Stealth Jet Can’t Fire Its Gun Until 2019|Dave Majumdar|December 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In general, their presence is meant to throw you off your game by design.
Brie Larson’s Hollywood Transformation|Marlow Stern|December 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Industry experts claim an increase in awareness amongst men when it comes to styles, design, and price regarding their underwear.
Would You Pay $100 For a 50 Cent Bulge? Men’s Undies Get Expensive|James Joiner|December 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Encompass Develop, Design Construct, LLC A Kentucky-based architect, design and construction service.
The 26 Next Hobby Lobbys|Abby Haglage|December 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
They are extremely well executed and enhance the beauty of the design.
Cathedral Cities of Italy|William Wiehe Collins
Then the design is traced on it, or drafted directly on it with lead.
The Invention of Lithography|Alois Senefelder
He will take as well a design that has been used a hundred times as a newer one.
An Artist's Letters From Japan|John La Farge
In the midst of them all, a group of splendid Toledo swords, beautiful in design and workmanship, were suspended.
Dangerous Ground|Lawrence L. Lynch
The important element in the argument from design—that of purpose—is thus pure assumption.
A Grammar of Freethought|Chapman Cohen

British Dictionary definitions for design

design

/ (dɪˈzaɪn) /

verb

to work out the structure or form of (something), as by making a sketch, outline, pattern, or plans

to plan and make (something) artistically or skilfully

(tr) to form or conceive in the mind; invent

(tr) to intend, as for a specific purpose; plan

(tr) obsolete to mark out or designate

noun

a plan, sketch, or preliminary drawing

the arrangement or pattern of elements or features of an artistic or decorative workthe design of the desk is Chippendale

a finished artistic or decorative creation

the art of designing

a plan, scheme, or project

an end aimed at or planned for; intention; purpose

(often plural; often foll by on or against) a plot or hostile scheme, often to gain possession of (something) by illegitimate means

a coherent or purposeful pattern, as opposed to chaosGod's design appears in nature

argument from design philosophy another name for teleological argument

Derived Forms

designable, adjective

Word Origin for design

C16: from Latin dēsignāre to mark out, describe, from de- + signāre to mark, from signum a mark, sign

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

Idioms and Phrases with design

design

see by design; have designs on.

design

verb (used with object)

verb (used without object)

noun

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Nearby words

Origin of design

Related forms

Synonym study

Examples from the Web for design

British Dictionary definitions for design

design

verb

noun

Derived Forms

Word Origin for design

Idioms and Phrases with design

design