determinate

adjective de·ter·mi·nate \ di-ˈtər-mə-nət \

Definition of determinate

1 : having defined limits

a determinate period of time

2 : definitely settled

a determinate order of precedence

3 : conclusively determined : definitive

a determinate answer

4 botany : characterized by sequential flowering from the central or uppermost bud to the lateral or basal (see basal 1b) buds; also : characterized by growth in which the main stem ends in an inflorescence and stops growing with only branches from the main stem having further and similarly restricted growth

determinate tomato plants

— compare indeterminate 4

5 biology : relating to, being, or undergoing egg cleavage (see cleavage 3) in which each division irreversibly separates portions of the zygote with specific potencies for further development

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determinately

adverb

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determinateness

noun

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Examples of determinate in a Sentence

a determinate period of time
a determinate order of succession to the throne

Recent Examples of determinate from the Web

Some of the Early Girl varieties are indeterminate (that is, growing tall and needing a cage or stake), but most of the other earlies are determinate (low-growing and potentially sprawling).

— margaret lauterbach, idahostatesman, "It’s possible to grow more than you’d expect in a small space," 10 Jan. 2018
Soon the court will have a chance to make a determinate decision on the Blaine amendments.

— valerie strauss, Washington Post, "Will the Supreme Court’s Trinity decision lead to the spread of school voucher programs?," 26 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'determinate.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.