Meaning of attribute in English

Table of contents

Verb
attribute
Etymology
late 15th century: the noun from Old French attribut; the verb from Latin attribut-‘allotted’: both from the verb attribuere, from ad-‘to’ + tribuere‘assign’
Definitions
1. attribute or credit to
Examples
- « We attributed this quotation to Shakespeare »
- « People impute great cleverness to cats »
Derived terms
2. decide as to where something belongs in a scheme
Examples
- « The biologist assigned the mushroom to the proper class »
Derived terms
Noun
attribute
Definitions
1. a construct whereby objects or individuals can be distinguished
Examples
- « self-confidence is not an endearing property »
2. an abstraction belonging to or characteristic of an entity

Famous quotes

« The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong. »
Mahatma Gandhi
« I would warn you that I do not attribute to nature either beauty or deformity, order or confusion. Only in relation to our imagination can things be called beautiful or ugly, well-ordered or confused. »
Baruch Spinoza
« To be perfectly just is an attribute of the divine nature to be so to the utmost of our abilities, is the glory of man. »
Joseph Addison
« We often attribute 'understanding' and other cognitive predicates by metaphor and analogy to cars, adding machines, and other artifacts, but nothing is proved by such attributions. »
John Searle
« The only concept or experience or core belief that I can attribute my other-ness to is that I just started out a weirdo and I stayed a weirdo. And it took me a long time to embrace my outsidership and see it as a strength rather than a weakness. »
Aisha Tyler