purpose

noun pur·pose \ ˈpər-pəs \

Definition of purpose

1 a :something set up as an object or end to be attained :intention

b :resolution, determination

2 :a subject under discussion or an action in course of execution

— on purpose

:by intent :intentionally

See purpose defined for English-language learners

See purpose defined for kids

Examples of purpose in a Sentence

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.

Recent Examples of purpose from the Web

Those attempts include exhaustive government audits and the targeting of Mr. González’s son with advanced spying technology purchased by the Mexican government for the sole purpose of investigating terrorists and organized crime.

— azam ahmed, New York Times, "A Scion of Mexico Fights Corruption, and Becomes a Target," 30 Aug. 2017
The local money would come from the unspent reserve of the capital improvment fund for street resurfacing, and the city would seek to use the federal air quality dollars for some other road improvement purpose.

— lynn horsley, kansascity, "Cyclists could get their wish for Grand Boulevard by late October," 30 Aug. 2017
O spirit of the corn, follow not me but abide still upon the earth and be strong and be faithful to your purpose.

— Longreads, "America’s First Addiction Epidemic," 29 Aug. 2017
Regulators in Europe, Canada, and elsewhere also have approved it for that purpose.

— meredith wadman, Science | AAAS, "Brain-altering magnetic pulses could zap cocaine addiction," 29 Aug. 2017
The fund, which is what’s known as a special purpose acquisition vehicle, will be able to set the value of its holdings and let backers trade its shares without the private companies having to go through their own IPOs.

— sarah mcbride, Bloomberg.com, "VCs Look to Create a Backdoor to Public Markets for Startups," 24 Aug. 2017
So was cornerback Tony Brown while fellow cornerback Trevon Diggs was a third-team selection as an all-purpose player on the preseason coaches All-SEC team.

— matt zenitz, AL.com, "Why Alabama's defense should again be elite," 24 Aug. 2017
But that’s a unity of purpose that, even after calling in his speech—too little and too late—for national unity after the horrors of Charlottesville, Trump refused to acknowledge.

— joshua a. geltzer, The Atlantic, "Trump's Recycled Afghanistan Policy," 22 Aug. 2017
Black Twitter Cameos: Regina Hall and Scott Foley are back for another episode of Due North, a completely nonsensical and hilarious show that clearly exists for the sole purpose of amusing me.

— cate young, Cosmopolitan, "Insecure Recap: Issa Plays the Field and Molly Makes a Shocking Decision," 21 Aug. 2017

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.

Origin and Etymology of purpose

Middle English purpos, from Anglo-French, from purposer to intend, propose, from Latin proponere (perfect indicative proposui) to propose — more at propound

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

See Words from the same year

purpose Synonyms

Synonyms

aim, ambition, aspiration, bourne (also bourn), design, dream, end, idea, ideal, intent, intention, mark, meaning, object, objective, plan, point, pretension, goal, target, thing

Related Words

grail, holy grail; plot, project, scheme; desire, hope, mind, wish; nirvana; destination, terminus

Near Antonyms

means, method, way

Synonym Discussion of purpose

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

purpose

verb pur·pose \ ˈpər-pəs \

Definition of purpose

purposed; purposing

transitive verb

:to propose as an aim to oneself