source

[ sawrs, sohrs ]

/ sɔrs, soʊrs /

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See synonyms for: source / sourced / sources on Thesaurus.com

noun

any thing or place from which something comes, arises, or is obtained; origin: Which foods are sources of calcium?

the beginning or place of origin of a stream or river.

a book, statement, person, etc., supplying information.

the person or business making interest or dividend payments.

a manufacturer or supplier.

Archaic. a natural spring or fountain.

verb (used with object), sourced, sourcing.

to give or trace the source for: The research paper was not accurately sourced. The statement was sourced to the secretary of state.

to find or acquire a source, especially a supplier, for: Some of the components are now sourced in Hong Kong.

verb (used without object), sourced, sourcing.

to contract a manufacturer or supplier: Many large companies are now sourcing overseas.

to seek information about or consider possible options, available personnel, or the like: a job recruiter who was merely sourcing.

OTHER WORDS FOR source

1 supplier, originator.

3 authority, reference.

See synonyms for source on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?

There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?

Question 1 of 7

Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of source

1300–50; Middle English sours (noun) <Old French sors (masculine), sourse, source (feminine), noun use of past participle of sourdre<Latin surgere to spring up or forth

OTHER WORDS FROM source

sourceful, adjectivesource·ful·ness, nounsourceless, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH source

sauce, source

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

How to use source in a sentence

On one side are arguments that schools are not major sources of spread.
Schools are not spreading covid-19. This new data explains why.|Emily Oster|November 20, 2020|Washington Post
Barrett shows the sole source of this idea to be a short — fewer than 100 words — and much-disputed passage by Tacitus.
What was Nero really doing while Rome burned?|Diana Preston|November 20, 2020|Washington Post
Bucks sending Eric Bledsoe and George Hill and draft compensation to New Orleans, sources said.
NBA free agency tracker (plus trades): Warriors acquire Kelly Oubre; 76ers trade Al Horford to Thunder|Ben Golliver|November 20, 2020|Washington Post
In this book, Kucharski, an epidemiologist, explores the source of outbreaks — and finds similarity in how things spread, from social media fads to the novel coronavirus.
The most 2020 books of 2020|Angela Haupt|November 19, 2020|Washington Post

Dubbed Sunshine Contacts, the app seeks to cull double entries while updating old phone numbers and emails in the address book by pulling, with user permission, contact information from sources such as Apple contacts, LinkedIn, and email.
Marissa Mayer launches her first startup|Lucinda Shen|November 18, 2020|Fortune
Again, the reasoning sounds, well, reasonable, and is sourced to a respectable organization, the Samaritans.
Cover-Ups and Concern Trolls: Actually, It's About Ethics in Suicide Journalism|Arthur Chu|January 3, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Media outlets “crowd sourced” the project, asking readers to help wade through the 24,000 pages of Palin emails.
The IRS Email Double Standard|Matt Lewis|November 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It demonstrated that he was alive, contradicting thinly-sourced claims that he had been killed in airstrikes earlier in the month.
Murder Vids Help ISIS Lure More Monsters|Thomas Joscelyn|November 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Many of the quotes are mysteriously sourced, apocryphal, or misattributed.
Russell Brand’s Revolution For Morons|Michael Moynihan|November 2, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In 2010, The New York Times ran a well-sourced story that helped to undermine the cover-up.
Murdoch on the Rocks: How a Lone Reporter Revealed the Mogul's Tabloid Terror Machine|Clive Irving|August 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST

British Dictionary definitions for source

source

/ (sɔːs) /

noun

the point or place from which something originates

a spring that forms the starting point of a stream; headspring
the area where the headwaters of a river risethe source of the Nile

a person, group, etc, that creates, issues, or originates somethingthe source of a complaint

any person, book, organization, etc, from which information, evidence, etc, is obtained
(as modifier)source material

anything, such as a story or work of art, that provides a model or inspiration for a later work

electronics the electrode region in a field-effect transistor from which majority carriers flow into the interelectrode conductivity channel

at source at the point of origin

verb

to determine the source of a news report or story

(tr foll by from) to originate from

(tr) to establish an originator or source of (a product, piece of information, etc)

Word Origin for source

C14: from Old French sors, from sourdre to spring forth, from Latin surgere to rise

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

source

OTHER WORDS FOR source

Origin of source

OTHER WORDS FROM source

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH source

Words related to source

How to use source in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for source

Word Origin for source