perfect

[ adjective, noun pur-fikt; verb per-fekt ]
See synonyms for: perfectperfectedperfectingperfectness on Thesaurus.com
adjective

  1. matching in every detail the definition of an ideal type of something: Even a ball bearing is not a perfect sphere.Your son is a perfect gentleman!

  2. excellent or complete beyond practical or theoretical improvement: There is no perfect legal code.The proportions of this temple are almost perfect.

  1. exactly fitting the need in a certain situation or for a certain purpose: He is the perfect actor to play Mr. Micawber.I have the perfect saw for cutting out keyholes.

  2. entirely without any flaws, defects, or shortcomings: She chose a perfect apple from the bowl.It was very nearly the perfect crime—next to impossible for detectives to solve.

  3. accurate, exact, or correct in every detail: I’ll email you a perfect copy when revisions are complete.

  4. thorough or complete; absolute; utter: A week ago we were perfect strangers, and already we’ve become friends.He made a perfect fool of himself.

  5. expert; accomplished; proficient: She will need a perfect driving teacher.

  6. pure or unmixed: perfect yellow.

  7. Botany.

  8. Grammar. designating a verb aspect or other verb category used for an action or state that is or will be complete as of some point of reference in time, and that is thought of with regard to its relevance or effect for that time.

  9. Music.

    • of or designating the consonances of unison, octave, and fifth, as distinguished from those of the third and sixth. : Compare imperfect (def. 6).

    • of or designating the intervals, harmonic or melodic, of an octave, fifth, and fourth in their normal form, as opposed to augmented and diminished.

  10. Mathematics. (of a set) equal to its set of accumulation points.

  11. Obsolete. assured or certain.

nounGrammar.

  1. : Compare future perfect (def. 1), pluperfect (def. 1), present perfect (def. 1).

    • a verb aspect or other verb category used for an action or state that is or will be complete as of some point of reference in time, and that is thought of with regard to its relevance or effect for that time.

    • an instance or form of a verb in this aspect, as in Ihave washedthe dishes, so can I go now? or By the time I arrived theyhad finishedbreakfast.

verb (used with object)

  1. to bring to perfection; make flawless or faultless: He has succeeded in perfecting his recipe for chicken Kiev.

  2. to bring nearer to perfection; improve; make better: She works hard to perfect her writing.

  1. to make fully skilled.

  2. to bring to completion; finish: Nietzsche believed that the emergence of the Superman would perfect the evolution of the human race.

  3. Printing. to print the reverse of (a printed sheet).

Origin of perfect

1
First recorded in 1250–1300; from Latin perfectus “finished,” past participle of perficere “to finish, bring to completion,” from per- per- + -fecere, combining form of facere “to do, make” (see also do1); replacing Middle English parfit, from Old French, from Latin, as above

usage note For perfect

A few usage guides still object to the use of comparison words such as more, most, nearly, almost, and rather with perfect on the grounds that perfect describes an absolute, yes-or-no condition that cannot logically be said to exist in varying degrees. The English language has never agreed to this limitation. Since its earliest use in the 13th century, perfect has, like almost all adjectives, been compared, first in the now obsolete forms perfecter and perfectest, and more recently with more, most, and similar comparison words: the most perfect arrangement of color and line imaginable. Perfect is compared in most of its general senses in all varieties of speech and writing. After all, one of the objectives of the writers of the U.S. Constitution was “to form a more perfect union.” See also complete, unique.

Other words for perfect

Other words from perfect

  • per·fect·ed·ly, adverb
  • per·fect·er, noun
  • per·fect·ness, noun
  • non·per·fect·ed, adjective
  • qua·si-per·fect, adjective
  • qua·si-per·fect·ly, adverb
  • self-per·fect·ing, adjective
  • su·per·per·fect, adjective
  • su·per·per·fect·ly, adverb
  • un·per·fect, adjective
  • un·per·fect·ed, adjective

Words that may be confused with perfect

Words Nearby perfect

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use perfect in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for perfect

perfect
adjective(ˈpɜːfɪkt)

  1. having all essential elements

  2. unblemished; faultless: a perfect gemstone

  1. correct or precise: perfect timing

  2. utter or absolute: a perfect stranger

  3. excellent in all respects: a perfect day

  4. maths exactly divisible into equal integral or polynomial roots: 36 is a perfect square

  5. botany

    • (of flowers) having functional stamens and pistils

    • (of plants) having all parts present

  6. grammar denoting a tense of verbs used in describing an action that has been completed by the subject. In English this is a compound tense, formed with have or has plus the past participle

  7. music

    • of or relating to the intervals of the unison, fourth, fifth, and octave

    • Also: full, final (of a cadence) ending on the tonic chord, giving a feeling of conclusion: Compare imperfect (def. 6)

  8. archaic positive certain, or assured

noun(ˈpɜːfɪkt)

  1. grammar

    • the perfect tense

    • a verb in this tense

verb(pəˈfɛkt) (tr)

  1. to make perfect; improve to one's satisfaction: he is in Paris to perfect his French

  2. to make fully accomplished

  1. printing to print the reverse side of (a printed sheet of paper)

Origin of perfect

1
C13: from Latin perfectus, from perficere to perform, from per through + facere to do

usage For perfect

For most of its meanings, the adjective perfect describes an absolute state, i.e. one that cannot be qualified; thus something is either perfect or not perfect, and cannot be more perfect or less perfect. However when perfect means excellent in all respects, a comparative can be used with it without absurdity: the next day the weather was even more perfect

Derived forms of perfect

  • perfectness, noun

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

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