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Showing results for by design. Search instead for trendy designs.
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.

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

First, by design, annuities reallocate money from those who die early to those who live forever.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 20, 2026

Experts say the execution of business as usual is by design.

From Barron's • Mar. 12, 2026

Or bring them closer, either by design or accident?

From "Atonement" by Ian McEwan

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.