characterize

verb

char·​ac·​ter·​ize ˈker-ik-tə-ˌrīz 

ˈka-rik-

characterized; characterizing

transitive verb

1

: to describe the character (see character entry 1 sense 1a) or quality of

characterizes him as ambitious

2

: to be a characteristic of : distinguish

an era characterized by greed

Synonyms of characterize

• describe
• portray
• define

Examples of characterize in a Sentence

How would you characterize the situation?

I would characterize this as a positive change for our company.

She had difficulty characterizing their relationship.

His personality is hard to characterize.

Farms and large flat fields characterize most of the area.

the beliefs that characterized Europe in the 15th century

Recent Examples on the Web

She was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at just 17 years old, marking the beginning of a long medical journey characterized by more than 25 surgeries. —Essence, 5 Dec. 2025

Robert Malone, the committee's vice chairman, characterized the vote to no longer universally recommend a birth dose vaccine as one that pitted individual rights against societal obligations. —Ken Alltucker, USA Today, 5 Dec. 2025

Justin Tallis | Afp | Getty Images Bitcoin’s more than 30% drop from its record high underscores the volatility that has come to characterize the cryptocurrency. —Arjun Kharpal, CNBC, 4 Dec. 2025

People are characterizing them and not listening to them. —Andrew Stanton, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Dec. 2025

Word History

Etymology

see character entry 1

First Known Use

circa 1602, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for characterize

• actualize
• antagonize
• apologise
• apologize
• capitalize
• categorize
• commercialize
• conceptualize
• contrariwise
• criminalize
• decentralize
• democratize

Kids Definition

characterize

verb

char·​ac·​ter·​ize ˈkar-ik-tə-ˌrīz 

characterized; characterizing

1

: to point out the character of an individual or group : describe

characterize him as ambitious

2

: to be characteristic of

tragic endings characterized her stories