enumerate
Americanverb (used with object)
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to mention separately as if in counting; name one by one; specify, as in a list.
Let me enumerate the many flaws in your hypothesis.
- Synonyms:
- recount, recapitulate
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to ascertain the number of; count.
verb
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(tr) to mention separately or in order; name one by one; list
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(tr) to determine the number of; count
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to compile or enter (a name or names) in a voting list for an area
Usage
What does enumerate mean? Enumerate means to name or list things one by one. Enumerate is typically used as a more formal alternative to the verb list. It emphasizes the fact that things are being specifically identified and listed one at a time. Less commonly, enumerate simply means to count. In Canada, it has a much more specific use: it means to enter names in an area’s voting list. Example: I welcome constructive criticism, but you don’t have to enumerate every single one of my mistakes in front of the rest of the people at the meeting.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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enumerationnoun
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enumeratornoun
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preenumerateverb (used with object)
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reenumerateverb (used with object)
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enumerableadjective
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enumerativeadjective
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nonenumerativeadjective
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unenumerativeadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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enumeratesimple
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enumeratessimple
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have enumeratedperfect
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has enumeratedperfect
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am enumeratingprogressive
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are enumeratingprogressive
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is enumeratingprogressive
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have been enumeratingperfect progressive
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has been enumeratingperfect progressive
Past
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enumeratedsimple
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had enumeratedperfect
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was enumeratingprogressive
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were enumeratingprogressive
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had been enumeratingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of enumerate
First recorded in 1640–50; from Latin ēnumerātus “counted out,” past participle of ēnumerāre “to count out,” from ē- e- 1 ( def. ) + numer(us) number + -āre, infinitive verb suffix
Explanation
To enumerate is to list or count off one by one. Before you ask for a raise, you'd better be able to enumerate all the reasons why you deserve more money. Tally, total, add up, compute — however you put it, enumerate is basically just another way to say "count." As in, "How do I love thee? Let me enumerate the ways." This verb came about in the 1610’s as a variation on the Latin enumerates, which means “to reckon up or count over.” To quote Paul Valery, the French critic, essayist, and poet, “Science is feasible when the variables are few and can be enumerated; when their combinations are distinct and clear."
Vocabulary lists containing enumerate
Grade 9, List 4
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Brave New World
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100 SAT Words Beginning with "E"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
"Many buildings were affected, but I cannot enumerate them now because we are busy with ongoing rescues."
From Barron's ● Jun. 8, 2026
The reasons why that happened are nearly too obvious and too depressing to enumerate.
From Salon ● Feb. 22, 2026
Cheerful illustrations accompanied by rhyming text enumerate little acts of love over the course of a day, from early-morning wake-ups to indulging requests for one more bedtime lullaby.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 23, 2026
“That process should look at their current risk tolerance and help enumerate their goals, both short and long term, which will help you and the adviser determine the appropriate mix of investments.”
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 26, 2025
But what would happen if I were to give you a questionnaire and ask you to enumerate your reasons for preferring one jam to another?
From "Blink" by Malcolm Gladwell
Mr. Elwes, a mathematical logician and professor at the University of Leeds, enumerates a multitude of such anecdotes—delightful, insightful, informative—to illustrate the bigger picture in “Huge Numbers.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 29, 2026
“The hungry throng” that Lee-Mäder enumerates includes at least 40 insect species that “feed often or exclusively on North American milkweeds in the summer,” he writes.
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 8, 2023
The measure, which dictates how the 118th Congress operates, includes an addendum that enumerates other concessions that McCarthy agreed to.
From Salon ● Jan. 19, 2023
In her new book, “Screaming on the Inside,” Grose enumerates the ways in which a broken system pushes mothers in particular past the breaking point, ruining their careers, their mental health and often their lives.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 6, 2022
One page after Tanaina Plantlore enumerates the wild potato, it describes a closely related species, wild sweet pea, Hedysarum mackenzii.
From "Into the Wild" by Jon Krakauer
We believed the Constitution limited the federal government to the powers enumerated in it, and that these weren’t to be construed so as to deny our constitutional rights.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 8, 2026
“The Commission has not, to date, made a determination regarding whether any such contracts involve an activity enumerated or prohibited.”
From Barron's ● Nov. 6, 2025
But it also enumerated a list of business types that are no longer allowed downtown.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 7, 2023
“The basis for security revocations are specifically enumerated by ODNI.”
From Washington Times ● Nov. 7, 2023
I enumerated the problems and when I finished, he said, “I will see what I can do.”
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
It’s the small details, which we could be here all day enumerating, and the delivery, rather than the big concepts, that bring the show alive.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 22, 2026
She quickly proved her worth to the family brand, sweetly selling her father-in-law’s every whim and enumerating the evil forces bent on taking him down.
From Slate ● Jan. 20, 2025
At the same time, “Some people are concerned that enumerating caste will solidify identities,” Jodhka says.
From Science Magazine ● Mar. 22, 2024
The same can’t be said of Marvel itself, according to a recent Variety story enumerating the disarray in Marvel’s business suites where executives have lost the thread due to the MCU’s overextension.
From Salon ● Nov. 9, 2023
The method of enumerating the months and the years has changed much more over the intervening centuries than have the astrological niceties.
From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
