different between construe vs define

English

Alternative forms

• conster (obsolete)

Etymology

Borrowed from Late Latin construo, construere (“to relate grammatically”), from Latin construo (“pile together”); doublet of construct.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /k?n?st?u?/
• (obsolete) IPA^(key): /?k?nst??/

Noun

construe (plural construes)

1. A translation.
2. An interpretation.

Related terms

Translations

Verb

construe (third-person singular simple present construes, present participle construing, simple past and past participle construed)

1. (transitive) To interpret or explain the meaning of something.
2. (grammar, transitive) To analyze the grammatical structure of a clause or sentence; to parse.

   • Thus, in a sentence such as:
     (113)      John considers [_S Fred to be too sure of himself]
     the italicised Reflexive himself can only be construed with Fred, not with John: this follows from our assumption that non-subject Reflexives must have an antecedent within their own S. Notice, however, that in a sentence such as:
     (114)      John seems to me [_S — to have perjured himself]
     himself must be construed with John.

3. (grammar, ergative) To admit of grammatical analysis.
4. (transitive) To translate.
5. To infer.

Derived terms

• construction
• misconstrue

Translations

References

Anagrams

• Counters, Cutrones, cornutes, counters, countres, recounts, trounces

Latin

Verb

c?nstrue

1. second-person singular present active imperative of c?nstru?

English

Etymology

From Middle English definen, from Old French definer, variant of definir, from Latin d?f?ni? (“limit, settle, define”), from d? + f?ni? (“set a limit, bound, end”)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /d??fa?n/
• Rhymes: -a?n

Verb

define (third-person singular simple present defines, present participle defining, simple past and past participle defined)

1. To determine with precision; to mark out with distinctness; to ascertain or exhibit clearly.

   • Rings […] very distinct and well defined.

2. (obsolete) To settle, decide (an argument etc.) [16th-17th c.]
   • 1596, Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene, IV.3:

     These warlike Champions, all in armour shine, / Assembled were in field the chalenge to define.

3. To express the essential nature of something.

4. To state the meaning of a word, phrase, sign, or symbol.

5. To describe, explain, or make definite and clear; used to request the listener or other person to elaborate or explain more clearly his or her intended meaning of a word or expression.

6. To demark sharply the outlines or limits of an area or concept.

7. (mathematics) To establish the referent of a term or notation.

Derived terms

Related terms

Translations

Noun

define (plural defines)

1. (programming) A kind of macro in source code that replaces one text string with another wherever it occurs.
   • 1996, James Gosling, Henry McGilton, The Java Language Environment

     From the computer programming perspective, Java looks like C and C++ while discarding the overwhelming complexities of those languages, such as typedefs, defines, preprocessor, unions, pointers, and multiple inheritance.

   • 1999, Ian Joyner, Objects unencapsulated: Java, Eiffel, and C++ (page 309)

     Anyone who has attempted to do OO programming in a conventional language using defines will find out that it is impossible to realize the benefits easily, if at all, without compiler support.

Translations

Further reading

• define in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• define in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.

Anagrams

• feed-in, feedin', infeed

Galician

Verb

define

1. third-person singular present indicative of definir
2. second-person singular imperative of definir

Portuguese

Verb

define

1. third-person singular (ele and ela, also used with você and others) present indicative of definir
2. second-person singular (tu, sometimes used with você) affirmative imperative of definir

Spanish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /de?fine/, [d?e?fi.ne]

Verb

define

1. Third-person singular (él, ella, also used with usted^?) present indicative form of definir.
2. Informal second-person singular (tú) affirmative imperative form of definir.

Turkish

Etymology

From Arabic ?????? (daf?na).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /de.fi??ne/

Noun

define

1. treasure trove

Declension

References

• define in Turkish dictionaries at Türk Dil Kurumu