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

In October 2019, China paused sponsorship deals with the National Basketball Association after Houston Rockets executive Daryl Morey posted online in support of protests in Hong Kong, which Beijing characterizes as separatist and seditious. — Miranda Jeyaretnam, Time, 28 Oct. 2026

Stages range from stage 0, which may not have visible symptoms, to stage 3, characterized by extreme swelling, with hard or thick skin and potentially decreased mobility, the NCI says. — ABC News, 28 Oct. 2026

Their dragline silk spidroin proteins are some of the best-characterized in all spiders. — Yasemin Saplakoglu, Quanta Magazine, 28 Oct. 2026

Evron characterized the university’s initial meetings with the students as an effort at damage control, saying officials repeatedly raised concerns about the institution’s reputation following news coverage of the messages. — Antonio María Delgado, Miami Herald, 28 Oct. 2026

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