Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- intransitive verb To establish or ascertain definitely, as after consideration, investigation, or calculation: synonym: discover.
- intransitive verb To give direction to by making decisions; devise or control.
- intransitive verb To decide or settle (a dispute, for example) conclusively and authoritatively. synonym: decide.
- intransitive verb To cause (someone) to come to a decision or resolution.
- intransitive verb To be the cause of; bring about a result regarding.
- intransitive verb Mathematics To fix or define the position, form, or configuration of.
- intransitive verb Logic To explain or limit by adding differences.
- intransitive verb Archaic To put an end to legally; terminate under the law.
- intransitive verb To reach a decision; resolve.
- intransitive verb Archaic To come to an end through legal means.
from The Century Dictionary.
- In Oxford and other universities, to take part in a solemn disputation preparatory to graduation as master of arts. See
determination , 12. - To fix the bounds of; mark off; settle; fix; establish.
- To limit in space or extent; form the limits of; bound; shut in: as, yonder hill determines our view.
- To ascertain or state definitely; make out; find out; settle; decide upon, as after consideration or investigation: as, to
determine the species of an animal or a plant; to determine the height of a mountain, or the quantity of nitrogen in the atmosphere. - In logic, to explain or limit by adding differences.
- To bring to a conclusion; put an end to; end.
- Specifically—6. To find, as the solution of a problem; end, as a dispute, by judicial or other final decision: as, the court determined the cause.
- To fix or settle definitely; make specific or certain; decide the state or character of.
- To come to a definite intention in respect of; resolve on; decide: as, he determined to remain.
- To give direction or tendency to; decide the course of: as, impulse may determine a moving body to this or that point.
- To influence the choice of; cause to come to a conclusion or resolution: as, this circumstance determined him to the study of law.
- Synonyms To limit.
- To ascertain, find out.
- To decide, conclude.
- To induce, influence, lead.
- To come to a decision or resolution; settle definitively on some line of conduct.
- To come to a close; end; terminate.
- To come to a determinate end in time; reach a fixed or definite limit; cease to exist or to be in force.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- intransitive verb obsolete To come to an end; to end; to terminate.
- intransitive verb To come to a decision; to decide; to resolve; -- often with
on . - transitive verb To fix the boundaries of; to mark off and separate.
- transitive verb To set bounds to; to fix the determination of; to limit; to bound; to bring to an end; to finish.
- transitive verb To fix the form or character of; to shape; to prescribe imperatively; to regulate; to settle.
- transitive verb To fix the course of; to impel and direct; -- with a remoter object preceded by
to . - transitive verb To ascertain definitely; to find out the specific character or name of; to assign to its true place in a system.
- transitive verb To bring to a conclusion, as a question or controversy; to settle authoritative or judicial sentence; to decide.
- transitive verb To resolve on; to have a fixed intention of; also, to cause to come to a conclusion or decision; to lead.
- transitive verb (Logic) To define or limit by adding a differentia.
- transitive verb (Physical Sciences) To ascertain the presence, quantity, or amount of
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- verb To
set thelimits of. - verb To
ascertain definitely ; tofigure out .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- verb fix conclusively or authoritatively
- verb find out, learn, or determine with certainty, usually by making an inquiry or other effort
- verb fix in scope; fix the boundaries of
- verb reach, make, or come to a decision about something
- verb settle conclusively; come to terms
- verb establish after a calculation, investigation, experiment, survey, or study
- verb shape or influence; give direction to
- verb decide upon or fix definitely
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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The light frequency, f, that we want to determine is too high to be measured directly.
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It is not possible to determine from a distance if someone is intelligent, kind, humourous or attentive (I call them private characteristics).
Ask Professor Foxy: Does My Size and Not Flirting Keep Me Alone? - Feministing 2009
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So the most that science can determine is that the object did not look very much like a face.
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Let each state determine the type of education they desire and how much they determine is necessary for their education.
Think Progress » Democratic congresswoman proposes pay cut for members of Congress. 2010
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Because Connecticut and Wisconsin determine just how important will be likely Republican losses in the Senate in Delaware and yes, Nevada, and that overall scenario will determine if Republicans gain control of the Senate.
Carl Jeffers: If the Election Were Held Today Carl Jeffers 2010
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I can determine from the chart that it is 51.6% red.
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That's the reason he should suffer whatever consequences the voters in his state determine is appropriate.
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Clinton, not Bush, sent a team to Iraq to examine the crash site, positively identify the aircraft as Speicher's, determine from the ejection seat and canopy far from the main debris field that Speicher had ejected, and identified the flight suit found at the site to be identical to the make, size, and markings of Speicher's flight suit.
When Will They Apologize to the Speicher Family? « Antiwar.com Blog 2009
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All a hearing would need to determine is if you are or are not here illegally.
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But there has to be a willingness to move towards transparency in whatever form we finally determine is appropriate.
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