How to Use define in a Sentence

define

verb
Definition of definenext
Synonyms for definenext
  • That fence defines the far edge of the property.
  • She believes that success should be defined in terms of health and happiness.
  • The government study seeks to define urban poverty.
  • Her book aims to define acceptable social behavior.
  • Certainly, Joe Biden has been out there trying to define his own legacy.
    — ABC News, 19 Jan. 2025
  • The options are really limitless if the business can define the workflow.
    — Kerri Davis, Forbes, 5 Oct. 2022
  • This customizable gelée is perfect for twist outs, wash and gos, and everything in between, and ideal to help curl types three and four shape and define their coils.
    — Tiffany Dodson, Harper's BAZAAR, 4 Oct. 2022
  • Here’s the problem: Dominik can’t define stardom when celebrityhood itself is in trouble.
    — Armond White, National Review, 5 Oct. 2022
  • In addition, internal strife has come to define a tumultuous year for All Elite Wrestling.
    — Alfred Konuwa, Forbes, 4 Oct. 2022
  • He’ll ultimately be defined, though, by his ability to continue to wait for plays to develop and stay cerebral as the speed of the level around him ramps up.
    — Scott Wheeler, The Athletic, 20 Jan. 2025
  • There are the joyful traditions, experiences, and summertime fun that define Black childhood in the city.
    — Mark Braboy, Rolling Stone, 7 Oct. 2022
  • Sharpless helped define the idea and then elaborated on it, describing a set of properties that click chemistry reactions should conform to.
    — John Timmer, Ars Technica, 5 Oct. 2022
  • The clinics also allow service members and veterans to define their families, meaning there are not restrictions that say a couple must be married.
    — San Diego Union-Tribune, 3 Oct. 2022
  • Russia is a country that makes no effort to make sense of, define who was responsible, ask for forgiveness and move on from its legacy of mass murder and institutionalized sadism.
    — Peter Pomerantsev, Time, 4 Oct. 2022
  • Music, initially just a creative outlet – and a party trick to flex in the school yard – has become a fundamental resource for the rapper to both express and define his most authentic self.
    — Beatrice Hazlehurst, Rolling Stone, 10 Oct. 2022
  • Detroit is a talent center ripe with innovation, giving rise to technology that will define tomorrow’s industries.
    — Forbes Press Releases, Forbes, 5 Oct. 2022
  • How Chaim Bloom approaches the Xander Bogaerts situation may define his offseason in the fans' eyes.
    — Christopher L. Gasper, BostonGlobe.com, 8 Oct. 2022
  • The rest of my hair looked shiny, defined, and healthy.
    — Jihan Forbes, Allure, 3 Sep. 2019
  • For me, that was a big, defining question to bring to the group.
    — Nicole Kagan, BostonGlobe.com, 19 July 2023
  • Goody was at the frontier of this new genre and helped to define it.
    — V.m. Braganza, Smithsonian Magazine, 6 Sep. 2023
  • Where are you supposed to find the time to define these three pieces?
    — Bill Keen, Forbes, 12 Mar. 2021
  • At the heart of the debate has always been how to define open space.
    — Shirley Leung, BostonGlobe.com, 6 Mar. 2021
  • Patrizia to life in the three decades that span the film and define her story.
    — Lauren Valenti, Vogue, 1 Dec. 2021
  • The need to fight corruption is clear, but so is the need to define it.
    — Elliott Abrams, National Review, 5 Oct. 2021
  • Johnson has one of the jobs that might, with luck, come to define our era.
    — Bill McKibben, The New Yorker, 6 Aug. 2020
  • This was the first year the survey asked the questions, which didn’t define those terms.
    — Nancy A. Youssef, WSJ, 1 Dec. 2022
  • Her mother used to tell her that the event wouldn’t define them.
    — Emily Witt, The New Yorker, 9 Sep. 2021
  • John Lennon once said that your voice defines rock and roll.
    — Jordan Runtagh, Peoplemag, 21 Dec. 2023
  • And it’s used by philosophers a lot to define a good life.
    — Shayla Love, Scientific American, 20 Feb. 2023
  • La Jolla shouldn’t be defined by seal selfies but celebrated for its unique ocean swimming areas, bodysurfing-only reef break and safe kayak launches from La Jolla Shores.
    — Kurt Hoffman, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 Jan. 2025

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'define.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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