Word
characterize
Phoneticschar·ac·ter·ize
/ˈkɛɹəktɝˌaɪz/
UK spelling · characterise
Definitions
01to describe qualities
v. to describe someone or something by their most important features, often in a specific way.
v. to describe the character or quality of someone or something; often used to frame a subject in a particular light.
“The media often characterize the new law as a threat to privacy.”
“Critics characterize his early novels as overly sentimental, though modern scholars argue they were actually quite subversive for their time.”
Usage
Often used in the pattern 'characterize something as something'.
02to be a typical feature
v. to be a typical quality or feature of a person, place, or thing.
v. to be a typical or distinguishing feature of a person, group, or thing.
“Bright colors and bold lines characterize the artist's unique style.”
“A high degree of economic volatility characterized the decade following the sudden collapse of the central bank.”
Academic
Usage
In this sense, the subject is the quality and the object is the thing being defined.
Synonyms
03to identify traits
v. to study something to find out its special qualities or what it is made of.
v. to determine or identify the specific characteristics or properties of a substance or phenomenon.
“The researchers worked to characterize the new virus in the laboratory.”
“The study aims to fully characterize the chemical composition of the soil samples collected from the volcanic site.”
Technical
Real-World Examples
“In early stages, it’s characterized by a high fever, small spots inside the mouth and a rash.” “There is no single definition of drought, but it is characterised by a period of low rainfall.” Etymology
From Medieval Latin charactērizō, from Ancient Greek χαρακτηρίζω (kharaktērízō, “to designate by a characteristic mark”), from χαρακτήρ (kharaktḗr, “a mark, character”). By surface analysis, character + -ize.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.