label

[ley-buhl]

noun

1. a slip of paper, cloth, or other material, marked or inscribed, for attachment to something to indicate its manufacturer, nature, ownership, destination, etc..

   The medicine bottle should have a label on it with the dosing instructions.

2. a short word or phrase descriptive of a person, group, intellectual movement, etc..

   The label “progressive” can be used to describe many different political movements.

3. a word or phrase indicating that what follows belongs in a particular category or classification.

   The label “Formal” marks words used in academic or business contexts.

4. Architecture.,  a molding or dripstone over a door or window, especially one that extends horizontally across the top of the opening and vertically downward for a certain distance at the sides.

5. 1. a brand or trademark under which something, such as clothing or music, is manufactured and sold.

      She records under her own label.

      Chanel has launched a new label for ready-to-wear couture.

   2. the manufacturer using such a label.

      All the big-name labels will have a runway show during Fashion Week.

      Major labels are feeling the economic crunch and are no longer signing small acts or individual musicians.

6. Heraldry.,  a narrow horizontal strip with a number of downward extensions of rectangular or dovetail form, usually placed in chief as the cadency mark of an eldest son.

7. Obsolete.,  a strip or narrow piece of anything.

verb (used with object)

labeled, labeling , labelled, labelling .

1. to affix a label to; mark with a label.

   The drawers have all been labeled with their contents.

2. to designate or describe by or on a label.

   The bottle was labeled poison.

3. to put in a certain class; classify.

   It's easy to label someone as difficult and stop trying, but curiosity and compassion can often get you further.

4. Chemistry.,  Also to incorporate a radioactive or heavy isotope into (a molecule) in order to make traceable.

label

/ ˈleɪbəl /

noun

1. a piece of paper, card, or other material attached to an object to identify it or give instructions or details concerning its ownership, use, nature, destination, etc; tag

2. a brief descriptive phrase or term given to a person, group, school of thought, etc

   the label "Romantic" is applied to many different kinds of poetry

3. a word or phrase heading a piece of text to indicate or summarize its contents

4. a trademark or company or brand name on certain goods, esp, formerly, on gramophone records

5. another name for dripstone

6. heraldry a charge consisting of a horizontal line across the chief of a shield with three or more pendants: the charge of an eldest son

7. computing a group of characters, such as a number or a word, appended to a particular statement in a program to allow its unique identification

8. chem a radioactive element used in a compound to trace the mechanism of a chemical reaction

verb

1. to fasten a label to

2. to mark with a label

3. to describe or classify in a word or phrase

   to label someone a liar

4. to make (one or more atoms in a compound) radioactive, for use in determining the mechanism of a reaction

label

1. See tracer

Other Word Forms

• labeler noun
• nonlabeling adjective
• nonlabelling adjective
• prelabel noun
• relabel verb (used with object)
• unlabeled adjective
• unlabelled adjective
• labeller noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of label¹

First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English, from Middle French: “ribbon,” perhaps from Germanic; lap ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of label¹

C14: from Old French, from Germanic; compare Old High German lappa rag

Example Sentences

Brit Award-winning singer Jorja Smith's record label has said it wants a share of the royalties for a song it claims was created using an artificial intelligence "clone" of the singer's voice.

Read more on BBC

Why reinforce the label of “food comedian” by attaching his name to a bacon?

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

The moves drew outrage, with an umbrella organisation of the Jewish community groups labelling it "scandalous" and a "moral and civilisational disgrace for Croatia".

Read more on Barron's

She also told me to identify the biggest sources of exposure in my home - change my cookware, use a water filter, switch cleaning products, check my make-up and hair-colouring and be wary of "waterproof" labels.

Read more on BBC

I think something probably labelled at him was that he was a bit one-dimensional, but he has grown in confidence.

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• company 
• design 
• logo 
• number 
• stamp 
• sticker 
• tag 
• trademark