DESCRIBES Synonyms: 83 Similar and Opposite Words

describes

verb

present tense third-person singular of describe

as in depicts

to give a representation or account of in words he tried to describe the dream he had last night as accurately as he could

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as in tells

to give an oral or written account of in some detail a biography of Washington that describes the decisive Battle of Yorktown at great length

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as in characterizes

to point out the chief quality or qualities of an individual or group how would you describe the Inupiat people you encountered in Alaska?

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Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of describes Loud describes herself as a democratic socialist who was formerly a social worker. — Emily Hallas, The Washington Examiner, 11 July 2026 Besides Miami, the trial — which Nelson describes as the first of its kind in the nation — will also be conducted at several other academic health centers in the country, as well as in Israel. — Michelle Marchante, Miami Herald, 10 July 2026 Police say the 32-year-old driver cooperated with investigators, but Garza’s family disputes that account and describes the incident as a hit-and-run. — Ruyuan Li. Summary Produced By Ai Assistance, Sacbee.com, 10 July 2026 The more Lal describes Lucero this way, the more everything non-linear about its development makes sense — and Lal himself starts to look less like an accidental developer and more like someone who always belonged here in the first place. — Peter Lane Taylor, Forbes.com, 10 July 2026 Future work targets precision and compact designs The paper also describes supporting technologies that improve field performance. — Sujita Sinha, Interesting Engineering, 10 July 2026 Its website describes the group as a social welfare nonprofit. — Kacen Bayless, Kansas City Star, 10 July 2026 Layton McKenzie, who joined as a sixth grader in 2006 and at 31 is now a teen program director, describes joining BCNY as life-changing. — Annalisa Merelli, STAT, 10 July 2026 The Anti-Defamation League describes Patriot Front as a white supremacist group. — Kyla Guilfoil, NBC news, 5 July 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for describes

Verb

The franchise depicts a future where good people want to do good, are endlessly curious, believe in justice and diplomacy and strive to maintain peace.

— Maira Garcia, Los Angeles Times, 3 July 2026
Achilles discovered among the Daughters of Lycomedes depicts a Greek mythological scene during the Trojan War in which the hero Achilles has been hidden by his mother, the sea nymph Thetis, on the island of Skyros.

— Maximilíano Durón, ARTnews.com, 2 July 2026

Definition of depicts

Verb

Knowing that a visitor asked three questions about security, spent time on your enterprise plan and then left without booking a demo tells you everything about what to do next.

— Suyash Karn, Forbes.com, 8 July 2026
The film, directed by award-winning filmmaker Bao Nguyen, in part tells the story of how CEO Matt Mullenweg founded what became Automattic, a company rooted in the philosophy of open-source software.

— Todd Spangler, Variety, 8 July 2026

Definition of tells

Verb

Resilience characterizes many young basketball players at SCC Dixon said.

— Nicole Gregory, Oc Register, 25 June 2026
Under that view, a taxpayer who actively participates in management should not receive the benefit simply because state law characterizes the interest as a limited partnership interest.

— Virginia La Torre Jeker, Forbes.com, 11 June 2026

Definition of characterizes

Verb

The story portrays the lives of adolescents today through their own eyes, allowing their voices and perspectives to shape the narrative in a genuine and convincing way.

— Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 11 July 2026
Sony portrays the call as a good-faith disclosure to give Teamsters a heads up about its closure plans before workers went ahead with the election.

— Jazz Monroe, Pitchfork, 9 July 2026

Definition of portrays

Verb

Caught between two opposing cultures, drawing on a cache of letters, documents, and remembrances, Ferrer meticulously recounts the travails of one migrant family and a punitive legal system that dogged them, skewering ideals of equity and fairness.

— Hamilton Cain, Time, 7 July 2026
Jones recounts Marvin Gay’s funeral, and being at the deathbeds of Sinatra and Sarah Vaughan.

— Hadley Hall Meares, Vanity Fair, 3 July 2026

Definition of recounts

Verb

If software becomes easier to generate, the value shifts away from the software artifact itself and toward the specification that defines what the software is supposed to accomplish.

— Sanjay Srivastava, Forbes.com, 7 July 2026
What defines her is not only extraordinary talent, but a lifetime of conscious choices – to lead with kindness, to contribute meaningfully, and to give back in ways that have endured, all with inimitable style and great humor.

— Chris Willman, Variety, 7 July 2026

Definition of defines

Verb

One case in particular illustrates what can happen when questions arise about the information that’s provided to board members and other stakeholders concerning new corporate leaders.

— Edward Segal, Forbes.com, 11 July 2026
Hurtado’s experience illustrates the chaos that, according to relatives of the deceased deportees and a forensic medicine expert, marked the handling of bodies after the earthquakes.

— Sonia Osorio, Miami Herald, 10 July 2026

Definition of illustrates

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“Describes.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/describes. Accessed 14 Jul. 2026.

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Synonyms of describes

verb

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