1
as in depicting
to give a representation or account of in words
he tried to describe the dream he had last night as accurately as he could
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in telling
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
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in characterizing
to point out the chief quality or qualities of an individual or group
how would you describe the Inupiat people you encountered in Alaska?
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of describing
When describing his overall plan for ELL and emergent bilingual learning after staff cuts, Licata said those resources are not being spent in the right directions for students.
—
Samuel O’Neal April 29, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 29 Apr. 2026
What the note was describing lay outside the perimeter.
—Harmeet Kaur, CNN Money, 29 Apr. 2026
The report does not mention Islamic extremism, and only occasionally mentions anti-Zionist fervor, often describing it using the words of other institutions and respondents.
—Beth Bailey, FOXNews.com, 29 Apr. 2026
Therefore, tracing the orbits of the stars allows astronomers to calculate the masses of the stars, and then compare these to what theoretical work describing the evolution of young protostars says their masses should be.
—Keith Cooper, Space.com, 28 Apr. 2026
Some were accurately describing their uniquely homemade contents, while others were deriding the very idea.
—Mark Ellwood, Robb Report, 28 Apr. 2026
Friends Remember Ernie Dosio as a Charitable Man Friends and colleagues have emphasized Dosio’s generosity and character, describing him as someone who gave back quietly and consistently.
—Ryan Brennan
april 28, Kansas City Star, 28 Apr. 2026
At a lecture at Aarhus University in 2015, Bar-Natan distributed a handout describing his goals.
—Erica Klarreich, Quanta Magazine, 22 Apr. 2026
The acquisition came after Jones was found guilty multiple times of defaming the families of the children killed in the Sandy Hook shooting, after repeatedly describing the massacre as a hoax.
—Rolling Stone, 22 Apr. 2026
Samuel O’Neal April 29, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 29 Apr. 2026
What the note was describing lay outside the perimeter.
—Harmeet Kaur, CNN Money, 29 Apr. 2026
The report does not mention Islamic extremism, and only occasionally mentions anti-Zionist fervor, often describing it using the words of other institutions and respondents.
—Beth Bailey, FOXNews.com, 29 Apr. 2026
Therefore, tracing the orbits of the stars allows astronomers to calculate the masses of the stars, and then compare these to what theoretical work describing the evolution of young protostars says their masses should be.
—Keith Cooper, Space.com, 28 Apr. 2026
Some were accurately describing their uniquely homemade contents, while others were deriding the very idea.
—Mark Ellwood, Robb Report, 28 Apr. 2026
Friends Remember Ernie Dosio as a Charitable Man Friends and colleagues have emphasized Dosio’s generosity and character, describing him as someone who gave back quietly and consistently.
—Ryan Brennan
april 28, Kansas City Star, 28 Apr. 2026
At a lecture at Aarhus University in 2015, Bar-Natan distributed a handout describing his goals.
—Erica Klarreich, Quanta Magazine, 22 Apr. 2026
The acquisition came after Jones was found guilty multiple times of defaming the families of the children killed in the Sandy Hook shooting, after repeatedly describing the massacre as a hoax.
—Rolling Stone, 22 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for describing
Verb
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An impressive theater Each of the three stories of the West Theater was surrounded by 16 columns, between which statues of gods were displayed, often depicting scenes from Homer’s epics.—
Maria Mocerino,
Interesting Engineering,
26 Apr. 2026
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But if the estate is legally prohibited from depicting basically the entire second half of Jackson’s life, what would a second movie even be about?—
Bethy Squires,
Vulture,
26 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Like Flores and Natal, Kaik found that the company, York Service & Towing, would only take cash, telling her that sometimes, people would pay with a credit card then cancel the card before payment went through.—
Ginny Monk,
Hartford Courant,
28 Apr. 2026
-
Shortly after telling her to contact security, Alvarez arrived upstairs.—
Alex Gurley,
PEOPLE,
28 Apr. 2026
Verb
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But those infractions do not justify characterizing an entire category of services that helps tens of millions of Americans remain in their homes as rife with fraud and in need of dramatic changes.—
Washington Post,
Washington Post,
23 Apr. 2026
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The author portrays Huntington Beach’s conservative leadership as opportunistic political actors seeking to weaponize local grievances for statewide power, characterizing their efforts to expand influence as built on cultural controversies rather than substantive governance achievements.—
Gustavo Arellano,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Ann Jillian went from a Disney child star to a '80s sitcom favorite, even portraying her own battle with cancer on screen.—
Stephanie Nolasco,
FOXNews.com,
25 Apr. 2026
-
Yes, Jaafar is actually singing while portraying Michael, with the late singer's vocals also being blended into some of the tracks.—
Caroline Blair,
PEOPLE,
25 Apr. 2026
Verb
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But the selection was appealingly unexpected from a down-the-middle country star like Johnson, who spent much of the rest of his set recounting his long music-industry come-up and urging folks to see past their differences in the name of unity.—
Mikael Wood,
Los Angeles Times,
25 Apr. 2026
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This is an interesting piece from Wired reporter Will Knight, who describes firsthand how advanced AI models are becoming alarmingly effective at social engineering, recounting a highly personalized phishing attempt generated entirely by the open-source model DeepSeek-V3.—
Sharon Goldman,
Fortune,
23 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Millions looked on as Britain's future king and queen wed on April 29, 2011, at Westminster Abbey in London, defining a new era for the monarchy.—
Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy,
USA Today,
29 Apr. 2026
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The soft, sunny color is the perfect hue to transition into the warmer months, and Kristi Patterson, founder and principal designer at Grace Hill Design, says yellow is emerging as the defining color of the season.—
Maria Sabella,
Better Homes & Gardens,
29 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Officers arrived to find three vehicles involved — each with a single driver — and began rendering aid alongside firefighters and paramedics, per the release.—
Christina Coulter,
PEOPLE,
24 Apr. 2026
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In a position such as lieutenant governor, where much of the office’s duties involve being only one of multi-member boards, radical positions tend to be largely drowned out by the majority, rendering the office even less effective.—
Rafael Perez,
Oc Register,
23 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Some of them are old systems of knowledge, ways of relating the body to fertility, death, and survival.—
George Nelson,
ARTnews.com,
20 Apr. 2026
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The Pisces new moon creates opportunities for fulfillment through relating.—
USA TODAY,
USA Today,
18 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Describing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/describing. Accessed 2 May. 2026.
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