determines

verb

present tense third-person singular of determine
1
as in decides
to give an opinion about (something at issue or in dispute) a three-member panel will determine the case

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in chooses
to come to a judgment about after discussion or consideration trying to determine which direction we were facing

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in finds
to come upon after searching, study, or effort we failed to determine the answer to the riddle

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in ceases
to come to an end your participation in the savings plan determines with the termination of your employment here

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
5
as in settles
to make final, definite, or beyond dispute your choice of college could determine the rest of your life

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

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 determines Of course, our bodies are all different, and this determines how quickly—or slowly—our hair grows. — Carly Cardellino Vaccaro, InStyle, 5 Sep. 2026 If the Interior Department determines the animals have met recovery goals, the administration will also work with states to encourage them to remove state-level protections and revise standards governing lethal wolf removal. — Anthony Thompson, USA Today, 5 Sep. 2026 If that analysis determines a project needs additional infrastructure, the developer must pay for those project-specific improvements including main extensions, line upgrades and capacity improvements. — Nora O'Neill, Charlotte Observer, 4 Sep. 2026 Making the right choice between scale-up and scale-out data systems determines what AI can accomplish in production. — Gopi Duddi, Forbes.com, 4 Sep. 2026 Researchers have now collected experimental evidence that determines how much titanium-44 is created in a supernova, finding that these cosmic explosions produce 35% more of this element than expected. — Robert Lea, Space.com, 4 Sep. 2026 If the secretary determines the criteria have been met, the order directs the department to begin that process. — Darrell Smith, Sacbee.com, 4 Sep. 2026 Rather bizarrely, that means Nvidia is in the hands of the oil market, because the oil market determines inflation and inflation determines Warsh's thinking. — Jim Cramer, CNBC, 30 Aug. 2026 The Algorithm then runs the numbers and determines that the only way to save the silo is for Bernard to go out to clean. — Noel Murray, Vulture, 28 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for determines
  1. decides
  2. chooses
  3. finds
  4. ceases
  5. settles
  6. opts
  7. learns
  8. concludes
Verb
  • She is involved in a bus accident that results in a fatality and, with the crusading passion that so many people felt after 9/11, decides to get involved as a witness and truth-teller.
    — Joshua Rothkopf, Los Angeles Times, 11 Sep. 2026
  • The Oconomowoc Area School District will align its decision on Flock cameras with whatever the City of Oconomowoc decides regarding its own use of the cameras.
    — Alec Johnson, jsonline.com, 11 Sep. 2026
Definition of decides
Verb
  • If a woman chooses a hospital, that is her right, but traditional birth should always be an option.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 11 Sep. 2026
  • Even if the team chooses to lean more heavily on its ground game, those touches won’t flow to a single player.
    — Andy Behrens, New York Times, 10 Sep. 2026
Definition of chooses
Verb
  • Being unmarked and arriving with momentum, Odegaard finds himself in a one-v-one with the goalkeeper again caught on his line.
    — Jon Mackenzie, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2026
  • Bridgespan’s report finds that families in middle-income countries are more likely to administer their own programs than those in higher-income countries.
    — Nicholas Gordon, Fortune, 7 Sep. 2026
Definition of finds
Verb
  • The turf needs this lead time to absorb the nutrients before growth ceases in winter.
    — Megan Hughes, Better Homes & Gardens, 2 Sep. 2026
  • Melting then ceases, leaving a thin crust on the surface of the fragment.
    — Robert Lea, Space.com, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of ceases
Verb
  • Adebo could see some action against three-receiver sets regardless, depending on what Harbaugh settles with at the slot corner spot.
    — Pat Leonard, New York Daily News, 28 Aug. 2026
  • As the fiscal reality of these mandates settles in communities across the state, the scramble of local governments to avoid cutting both core and beloved school programs like Outdoor School will become even more frantic.
    — Chris Roemer, Baltimore Sun, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of settles
Verb
  • If the district attorney opts to downgrade charges against Clancy, the parties could potentially come to a plea agreement to avoid a second trial.
    — Lauren del Valle, CNN Money, 4 Sep. 2026
  • There is a seven-day retention option, but Waybourn said the county opts for the longer retention to give crime victims more time to come forward.
    — Rachel Royster, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of opts
Verb
  • Israel robs children of their smallest joys because joy is the seed of hope, and that is how the body learns that captivity is not the natural condition of life.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 11 Sep. 2026
  • Upon arriving in New York, April learns that her affable son Thoe (Toby Wallace) and his girlfriend Lucy (Odessa A’zion) have already met Sandra without her knowing.
    — Matthew Huff, IndieWire, 10 Sep. 2026
Definition of learns
Verb
  • Even so, the report concludes that the risks outweigh those benefits.
    — Dónal Gill, The Dial, 8 Sep. 2026
  • McKinsey, too, concludes that sales strategies can no longer be designed around a single buyer type.
    — Jodi Amendola, Forbes.com, 8 Sep. 2026
Definition of concludes

Browse Nearby Words

determinedness
determines
determining
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Determines.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/determines. Accessed 12 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of hobnob

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

Words from the 'Odyssey'

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of
See More

Popular

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
funny guinea pig in glasses reading a book
Challenging Words You Should Know Vol 2 Words to the wise
See All