Definition of PURPOSE

Choose the Right Synonym for purpose

Noun

intention, intent, purpose, design, aim, end, object, objective, goal mean what one intends to accomplish or attain. intention implies little more than what one has in mind to do or bring about. announced his intention to marry intent suggests clearer formulation or greater deliberateness. the clear intent of the statute purpose suggests a more settled determination. being successful was her purpose in life design implies a more carefully calculated plan. the order of events came by accident, not design aim adds to these implications of effort directed toward attaining or accomplishing. her aim was to raise film to an art form end stresses the intended effect of action often in distinction or contrast to the action or means as such. willing to use any means to achieve his end object may equal end but more often applies to a more individually determined wish or need. his constant object was the achievement of pleasure objective implies something tangible and immediately attainable. their objective is to seize the oil fields goal suggests something attained only by prolonged effort and hardship. worked years to reach her goals

Examples of purpose in a Sentence

Noun Shocking as it is, more than a month after the hurricane hit, New Orleans is still, for all practical purposes, a ghost town. — Tom Piazza, Why New Orleans Matters, 2005 By the time … American aid began pouring in, to all intents and purposes the war had already been lost. — Neil L. Jamieson, Understanding Vietnam, 1993 But wartime wage and price controls prevented companies from competing for the available talent by means of increased salaries. They had to compete with fringe benefits instead, and free health insurance was tailor-made for this purpose. — John Steele Gordon, American Heritage, May - June 1992 His purpose is to realize himself, to live the fullest possible life, and he is responsible for this, like all men, regardless of how society treats him. — Shelby Steele, Wilson Quarterly, Summer 1990 The purpose of the new resort is to attract more tourists. The loans are small but they serve a good purpose. Sometimes his life seemed to lack purpose or meaning. We started work again with a renewed sense of purpose. Verb I have not purposed to misrepresent this boy in any way, for what little indignation he excited in me soon passed and left nothing behind it but compassion. — Mark Twain, A Tramp Abroad, 1880 The child then explained that they had left the races on the first day, and were travelling to the next town on that road, where they purposed to spend the night. — Charles Dickens, The Old Curiosity Shop, 1841 I've been purposing to fix that thing for some time now.

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun The Gianfortes established a charitable family trust for the primary purpose of promoting their conservative Christian agenda. — Wes Siler, Outside Online, "In Montana, Stream Access Is on the Ballot," 16 Oct. 2020 King discovered that his military profile was being used to lure lonely and vulnerable women — and some men — into online romances for the purpose of bilking them out of money. — Diane Bell Columnist, San Diego Union-Tribune, "Column: Nigerian romance scheme targets local Marine," 16 Oct. 2020 The Registrar’s office will be open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. for this purpose on Nov. 2. — courant.com, "Community News For The Windsor Edition," 15 Oct. 2020 But supervisors are forbidden from searching footage for the sole purpose of finding department violations, unless that footage is related to a specific complaint or incident under review. — Elizabeth Depompei, The Indianapolis Star, "This is when IMPD body cameras are activated, and who gets to see footage," 15 Oct. 2020 As to whether there were aspects of his life that were hard to relive for the purpose of sharing in a memoir, Frampton doesn't have to mull it over. — Ed Masley, The Arizona Republic, "'My life is an open book': Peter Frampton talks about his memoir, music and playing live," 15 Oct. 2020 Its meaning is entirely social, created by a community for the purpose of communication. — Noah Millman, TheWeek, "What the language police miss about offensive words," 15 Oct. 2020 With roughly $135 million in funding from the federal government, more Cepheid machines are being added at health clinics across the city for the purpose of Covid-19 testing. — Melanie Grayce West, WSJ, "New York City’s New Health Commissioner Is Worried About a Coronavirus Resurgence," 14 Oct. 2020 The resolution requests that the council be able to directly contact employees of the executive branch for the purpose of asking questions — not giving orders, which is prohibited by the charter. — James Whitlow, baltimoresun.com, "Harford County Council passes resolution requesting more access to executive branch employees, information," 14 Oct. 2020 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb Congressional Democrats sharply criticized a Defense Department decision to re-purpose a $1 billion coronavirus fund into an economic stimulus for defense contractors, a change that the lawmakers say violated congressional intent. — Washington Post, "Democrats seek investigation into Pentagon’s COVID fund following Washington Post article," 22 Sep. 2020 Giving mourners a task grants them purpose and a sense of control. — Katy Kelleher, Longreads, "The Ugly History of Beautiful Things: Lockets," 10 Aug. 2020 The foundation has contributed $250 million to help counter the coronavirus so far, and is re-purposing units dedicated to fighting other diseases to join in the battle against the pandemic. — Hailey Waller, Fortune, "Bill Gates’ coronavirus vaccine could be manufacturing at scale in a year," 26 Apr. 2020 Pence is expected to highlight the factory's re-purposing as an example of the Trump administration's response to both supply shortages and the economic fallout from the virus. — Tony Cook, Indianapolis Star, "Are Pence's ties to the state benefiting Indiana's coronavirus response?," 29 Apr. 2020 Staff members within the cabinet have been re-purposed and other state cabinets have pitched in to handle claims. — Matthew Glowicki, The Courier-Journal, "'Please try your call later.' Will Kentucky fix its unemployment filing headache?," 9 Apr. 2020 Estimates suggested in this Collectibles column are for general information purposes only and cannot be used as a basis for sale, insurance, or IRS purposes. — oregonlive, "Century-old Japanese vase, Revolutionary War box, toy car: What are they worth?," 3 Apr. 2020 While pop’s famous fetish for touch and makeouts often results in songs that feel frenzied and chaotic, there’s frequently purpose, dignity, and even grandeur to tracks about enlightened disconnection. — Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, "How to Party Alone," 1 Apr. 2020 The rink will be re-purposed by Madrid's regional government and military emergency units, which have been deployed across Spain over the past week to help deal with the coronavirus crisis. — NBC News, "Mnuchin, Schumer optimistic on coronavirus stimulus package, say deal is close," 25 Mar. 2020

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