description

English

Wikipedia

Etymology

From Old French description, from Latin dēscrīptiō, noun of action of dēscrībō ‎(“I describe”).

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /dɪˈskɹɪpʃən/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Noun

description ‎(plural descriptions)

1. A sketch or account of anything in words; a portraiture or representation in language; an enumeration of the essential qualities of a thing or species.
2. The act of describing; a delineation by marks or signs.
3. A set of characteristics by which someone or something can be recognized.

   The zoo had no lions, tigers, or cats of any description.

4. (taxonomy) A scientific documentation of a taxon for the purpose of introducing it to science.

   The type description of the fungus was written by a botanist.

Synonyms

• (characteristics): sort, kind, type, variety

Translations

account in words

• Arabic: وَصْف m ‎(waṣf)
• Belarusian: апісанне n ‎(apisánnje)
• Bulgarian: описание (bg) n ‎(opisanie)
• Catalan: descripció f
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 描寫 (zh), 描写 (zh) ‎(miáoxiě), 描述 (zh) ‎(miáoshù)

• Czech: popis (cs) m
• Danish: beskrivelse (da)
• Dutch: beschrijving (nl) f
• Esperanto: priskribo
• Estonian: (1) ^{(please verify)} kirjeldus, (2) ^{(please verify)} kirjeldamine
• Finnish: kuvaus (fi), selitys (fi)
• French: description (fr) f
• German: Beschreibung (de) f
• Greek: περιγραφή (el) f ‎(perigrafí)
• Hebrew: תיאור (he) m ‎(ti'ur)
• Hungarian: leírás (hu)
• Ido: deskripto (io)
• Indonesian: deskripsi (id)
• Italian: descrizione (it) f

• Japanese: 記述 (ja) ‎(きじゅつ, kijutsu), 説明 (ja) ‎(せつめい, setsumei), 描写 (ja) ‎(びょうしゃ, byōsha)
• Korean: 묘사 (ko) ‎(myosa), 기술 (ko) ‎(gisul), 서술 (ko) ‎(seosul), 설명 (ko) ‎(seolmyeong), 기재 (ko) ‎(gijae)
• Ladino: deskripsion f
• Latvian: attēlojums m, apraksts m
• Lithuanian: (1) aprašymas (lt), (2) apibūdinimas
• Lojban: ^{(please verify)} ve skicu
• Meänkieli: kuvvailu
• Persian: توصیف (fa)
• Polish: opis (pl) m
• Portuguese: descrição (pt) f
• Romanian: descripție (ro), descriere (ro)
• Russian: описа́ние (ru) n ‎(opisánije)
• Scots: descreeption
• Scottish Gaelic: tuairisgeul m
• Slovak: popis m
• Spanish: descripción (es) f
• Swedish: beskrivning (sv) c
• Telugu: వర్ణన (te) ‎(varṇana)
• Turkish: tanım (tr), tavsif (tr)
• Ukrainian: о́пис m ‎(ópys)

characteristics

• Bulgarian: описание (bg) n ‎(opisanie)
• French: signalement (fr)
• Hungarian: leírás (hu), személyleírás (hu)
• Irish: comharthaí m pl, comharthaí aithne m pl, comharthaí sóirt m pl

• Scottish Gaelic: tuairisgeul m
• Spanish: señalamiento
• Swedish: signalement (sv)
• Turkish: vasif

Related terms

• describe
• descriptive

External links

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

See also

• synopsis
• interpretation

Anagrams

• discerption, predictions

---

French

Etymology

From Latin dēscriptiō.

Pronunciation

• Audio

  (file)

• IPA^(key): /de.skʁip.sjɔ̃/
• Homophone: descriptions

Noun

description f ‎(plural descriptions)

1. description

Related terms

• décrire

External links

• “description” in le Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

---

Old French

Etymology

From Latin dēscriptiō.

Noun

description f ‎(oblique plural descriptions, nominative singular description, nominative plural descriptions)

1. description

Related terms

• descrivre