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Showing results for by design. Search instead for key design.
Synonyms

by design

Idioms  

  1. On purpose, deliberately, as in Whether by luck or by design, his application was accepted. This term, originally put as on design, uses design in the sense of “plan.” [First half of 1600s]

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.

The longer disruptions last, the more capacity will have to fall worldwide, either by design or because people decide flying is too expensive.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 10, 2026

As its organizers explained to the Guardian, this is mostly by design.

From Salon • Apr. 4, 2026

This ambiguity is, at least partly, by design.

From BBC • Apr. 1, 2026

That uncertainty is by design, according to Zephyr Teachout, a Fordham University law professor.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 1, 2026

In any case, shortly after Ruess carved his mark into the sandstone, he departed Davis Gulch and mysteriously disappeared, apparently by design.

From "Into the Wild" by Jon Krakauer

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.