typify

[ tip-uh-fahy ]

See synonyms for typify on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object),typ·i·fied, typ·i·fy·ing.

to serve as a typical example of; exemplify.
to serve as a symbol or emblem of; symbolize; prefigure.

to represent by a type or symbol.

Origin of typify

1625–35; <Latin typ(us) type + -ify

Other words from typify

typ·i·fi·ca·tion, noun
typ·i·fi·er, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use typify in a sentence

The black woman stood laden and smiling like some ebon effigy typifying plenty and good cheer.
The Open Question | Elizabeth Robins
The human figure represents Duck-toolh "Black-skin" (typifying strength), tearing the sealion in two.
The Whale House of the Chilkat | George T. Emmons
Jacqueline Ralston had seemed to him so splendid, typifying to him the free, outdoor life of the great West.
The Ranch Girls at Rainbow Lodge | Margaret Vandercook
There is one to the Moon-Angel, and near it a small dome of black marble typifying the Earth.
A Son of Perdition | Fergus Hume
It made appeal to his imagination, typifying the reborn "Clarion."
The Clarion | Samuel Hopkins Adams

British Dictionary definitions for typify

typify

/ (ˈtɪpɪˌfaɪ) /

verb-fies, -fying or -fied (tr)

to be typical of; characterize
to symbolize or represent completely, by or as if by a type

Origin of typify

C17: from Latin typus type + -ify

Derived forms of typify

typification, noun
typifier, 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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