1
as in ascribes
to explain (something) as being the result of something else
attributed the quick rescue to the well-trained police force
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in explains
to give the reason for or cause of
a psychotherapist who's a little too quick to attribute every emotional problem or character defect to an unhappy childhood
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in characteristics
something that sets apart an individual from others of the same kind
list the attributes of a mammal
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of attributes
Joanna Kakissis, NPR, 27 Feb. 2026
Newport Police Department attributes the death to carbon monoxide poisoning, as the entire vehicle, including the tailpipe, was covered with snow.
—Eryn Dion, The Providence Journal, 24 Feb. 2026
AirDNA attributes the modest price bump to abundant supply in South Florida, though the rate is still the third highest among host cities.
—Miami Herald Archives, Miami Herald, 23 Feb. 2026
The group attributes these injuries to the militarization of the border, including a rise in violence by guards.
—Elizabeth Flock, New Yorker, 23 Feb. 2026
Wray also was runner-up seven times and third three times, a dynastic success that Smith attributes to a feeder wrestling program that was ahead of its time.
—Kyle Newman, Denver Post, 21 Feb. 2026
Tenacity and the love of theater are what Orange attributes to keeping the show going for 72 seasons.
—Mary Eber, CBS News, 18 Feb. 2026
Gruver attributes their popularity to their versatility.
—Maria Sabella, Better Homes & Gardens, 15 Feb. 2026
In its report, the company attributes the slump largely to the restructuring phase in the first half of the year.
—New Atlas, 14 Feb. 2026
Miami Herald, 27 Feb. 2026
There are certainly ways to mitigate some of their negative attributes without bulldozing them.
—Brian Barth, Mercury News, 27 Feb. 2026
At the core of the platform is a structured database that links care providers—including post-acute, specialty, and rehabilitation facilities—with insurance plan criteria and facility attributes such as accessibility and service capabilities.
—IEEE Spectrum, 26 Feb. 2026
Also, Joe was loving his tribe, highlighting the attributes of the cast with a combination of strength and brains.
—Christopher Kuhagen, jsonline.com, 25 Feb. 2026
Instead, users on the app may see someone's interests, age and basic attributes, accompanied by a blurred or silhouetted photo.
—Mary Walrath-Holdridge, USA Today, 24 Feb. 2026
Customer segments are a way of narrowing down your target market and separating them based on attributes like demographics, psychographics, spending behaviors and even geography.
—Jasmin Suknanan, CNBC, 24 Feb. 2026
Important attributes, but there is more to say about their surge in popularity.
—Cathy Thomas, Oc Register, 23 Feb. 2026
So, the Olympics has all the attributes of just great drama and story.
—Sara Germano, Sportico.com, 18 Feb. 2026
Verb
Bolyak attributes the rise in cheerleading's popularity to Ukrainians seeking emotional respite from wartime stress and terror.
—Joanna Kakissis, NPR, 27 Feb. 2026
Newport Police Department attributes the death to carbon monoxide poisoning, as the entire vehicle, including the tailpipe, was covered with snow.
—Eryn Dion, The Providence Journal, 24 Feb. 2026
AirDNA attributes the modest price bump to abundant supply in South Florida, though the rate is still the third highest among host cities.
—Miami Herald Archives, Miami Herald, 23 Feb. 2026
The group attributes these injuries to the militarization of the border, including a rise in violence by guards.
—Elizabeth Flock, New Yorker, 23 Feb. 2026
Wray also was runner-up seven times and third three times, a dynastic success that Smith attributes to a feeder wrestling program that was ahead of its time.
—Kyle Newman, Denver Post, 21 Feb. 2026
Tenacity and the love of theater are what Orange attributes to keeping the show going for 72 seasons.
—Mary Eber, CBS News, 18 Feb. 2026
Gruver attributes their popularity to their versatility.
—Maria Sabella, Better Homes & Gardens, 15 Feb. 2026
In its report, the company attributes the slump largely to the restructuring phase in the first half of the year.
—New Atlas, 14 Feb. 2026
Noun
Anderson-Rhodes said her aunt’s sense of humor was one of her greatest attributes.
—Miami Herald, 27 Feb. 2026
There are certainly ways to mitigate some of their negative attributes without bulldozing them.
—Brian Barth, Mercury News, 27 Feb. 2026
At the core of the platform is a structured database that links care providers—including post-acute, specialty, and rehabilitation facilities—with insurance plan criteria and facility attributes such as accessibility and service capabilities.
—IEEE Spectrum, 26 Feb. 2026
Also, Joe was loving his tribe, highlighting the attributes of the cast with a combination of strength and brains.
—Christopher Kuhagen, jsonline.com, 25 Feb. 2026
Instead, users on the app may see someone's interests, age and basic attributes, accompanied by a blurred or silhouetted photo.
—Mary Walrath-Holdridge, USA Today, 24 Feb. 2026
Customer segments are a way of narrowing down your target market and separating them based on attributes like demographics, psychographics, spending behaviors and even geography.
—Jasmin Suknanan, CNBC, 24 Feb. 2026
Important attributes, but there is more to say about their surge in popularity.
—Cathy Thomas, Oc Register, 23 Feb. 2026
So, the Olympics has all the attributes of just great drama and story.
—Sara Germano, Sportico.com, 18 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for attributes
Verb
-
Meanwhile, Brewer ascribes Starbucks’ success in Italy, where even the average person is a coffee connoisseur, to offering people, especially young people, a place to relax and enjoy a coffee.—
Phil Wahba,
Fortune,
29 Jan. 2026
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This breakup analysis ascribes no value to the companies being under the same corporate parent.—
Peter Cohan,
Forbes.com,
14 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
This explains why parents have so little patience for the complaint.—
Daniel Smith,
The Atlantic,
27 Feb. 2026
-
In that sense, Coddington explains that legacy is not measured solely by what is transferred.—
Connie Etemadi,
USA Today,
27 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Those four projects shared key characteristics — and those characteristics help explain why White Stadium is a case study in procurement failure.—
Ed Gaskin,
Boston Herald,
27 Feb. 2026
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But the fractures that Turlier’s colleagues observed in mouse embryos display different characteristics.—
Clare Watson,
Quanta Magazine,
27 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Hasimi credits her friends, family and the doctors at Yale with helping her through the darkest days.—
Livi Stanford,
Hartford Courant,
27 Feb. 2026
-
The 32-year-old entering his third season with the Dodgers credits his coaches for keeping his mechanics on point.—
Senior Editor,
Los Angeles Times,
27 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
The game has cultivated a fanbase that is generally kind and patient, increasingly rare qualities in the gaming world, and online more broadly.—
Jacqui Palumbo,
CNN Money,
26 Feb. 2026
-
Those varieties, studied and modified by researchers at UC Davis, were engineered to achieve specific characteristics when harvested at particular times, and to hold those qualities when preserved in a can.—
Jake Goodrick,
Sacbee.com,
26 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Hybrid fruit trees are created by cross-pollinating two different types of fruit trees to produce a new variety that combines traits from each parent tree.—
SJ McShane,
Martha Stewart,
27 Feb. 2026
-
Participants then rated that person on traits such as warmth, competence, morality, and authenticity.—
Angela Haupt,
Time,
27 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Former presidents and their spouses receive lifelong Secret Service protection under federal law, but there are no provisions guaranteeing the elite levels of private travel that were necessary features of their time in office.—
Meg Kinnard,
Los Angeles Times,
28 Feb. 2026
-
Beyond the auditorium roof, the studio employed other clever features to keep the building cool in Indore's hot climate, which sees temperatures of 86 °F - 104 °F (30 °C - 40 °C) for most of the year.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
28 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Political discussions on social media are often dominated by competing attributions of more and more insidious motives to people on the other side.—
Mark Schroeder,
The Conversation,
20 Feb. 2026
-
This post was corrected on 21 January 2021 to clarify attributions.—
IEEE Spectrum,
IEEE Spectrum,
12 Jan. 2021
Cite this Entry
“Attributes.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/attributes. Accessed 6 Mar. 2026.
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