by definition

idiom

: because of what something or someone is : according to the definition of a word that is being used to describe someone or something

A volunteer by definition is not paid.

A glider is by definition an aircraft with no engine.

Examples of by definition in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Systems optimized for early performance are, by definition, mechanisms for suppressing everything that develops on a longer fuse. —Rachel Barr, Big Think, 29 Jan. 2026

Canons are by definition exclusionary. —Colton Valentine, New Yorker, 24 Jan. 2026

If putting on a runway show for an independent label is an ambitious thing by definition (fiscally alone, costs can range between the mid-five-figures to anywhere above six), achieving what Chavarria did today is formidable on a different level. —José Criales-Unzueta, Vanity Fair, 23 Jan. 2026

The act of faith, of believing, is by definition something that can’t be seen. —Mark Olsen, Boston Herald, 23 Jan. 2026

Rhymes for by definition

• academician
• cycloaddition
• decomposition
• diagnostician
• disinhibition
• indisposition
• interposition
• juxtaposition
• mathematician
• metacognition
• metaphysician
• neurotransmission