purpose
Americannoun
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purposes
plural
-
the reason for which something exists or is done, made, used, etc.
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determination; resoluteness.
-
the subject in hand; the point at issue.
-
practical result, effect, or advantage.
to act to good purpose.
verb (used with object)
-
to set as an aim, intention, or goal for oneself.
-
to intend; design.
- Synonyms:
- plan, contemplate, mean
-
to resolve (to do something).
He purposed to change his way of life radically.
verb (used without object)
idioms
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on purpose, by design; intentionally.
How could you do such a thing on purpose?
-
to the purpose, relevant; to the point.
Her objections were not to the purpose.
noun
-
the reason for which anything is done, created, or exists
-
a fixed design, outcome, or idea that is the object of an action or other effort
-
fixed intention in doing something; determination
a man of purpose
-
practical advantage or use
to work to good purpose
-
that which is relevant or under consideration (esp in the phrase to or from the purpose )
-
archaic purport
-
intentionally
verb
Synonym Usage
See intention.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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prepurposeverb (used with object)
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repurposeverb (used with object)
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unpurposedadjective
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unpurposingadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of purpose
First recorded in 1250–1300; (noun) Middle English purpos, from Old French, derivative of purposer, variant of proposer “to propose ”; (verb) Middle English purposen, from Anglo-French, Old French purposer
Explanation
When you do something with purpose, you do it with determination. When your activities have a purpose, you have an aim or intention in mind. This noun also has a third meaning: "function, role, or use." The purpose of a fork, for instance, is to spear and scoop food from your plate, not to poke your little brother at the dinner table. Purpose can also be used as a verb meaning "to reach a decision" or "to intend," though these uses of the word are quite a bit less frequent nowadays.
Vocabulary lists containing purpose
The SAT: Language of the Test, List 2
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The Language of Standardized Tests, List 1
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PARCC: Language of the Test (Grade7)
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
But the post raises questions about both the history of the project and its newly announced military purpose.
From Salon ● Sep. 20, 2026
Cats are known to have large numbers of them, but their biological purpose has remained uncertain.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 20, 2026
But now, the optical fiber that forms the basis of telecom networks is being used for a different purpose: connectivity inside and between data centers, hundreds of miles apart.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 19, 2026
Is it aliens we are seeking, “The Pineapple” begins to ask, or simply perhaps purpose?
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 18, 2026
The American Colonization Society is founded with the purpose of resettling freed American blacks on the west coast of Africa.
From "In the Shadow of Liberty" by Kenneth C. Davis
The agency encourages property owners to remove certain trees around homes for defensible-space purposes and works to thin forests throughout the Tahoe Basin to reduce wildfire risk.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 19, 2026
The report says that while "ordinary access restrictions may be legitimate for security purposes… they cannot render designated emergency routes inaccessible when needed."
From BBC ● Sep. 16, 2026
Later analysis showed that Old Ancestors had intentionally placed the stone inside the cave for ritual purposes around 2,000 years ago.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 15, 2026
On Tuesday Jacob Coxon resigned from Anthropic with a warning, viewed by millions, that AI will soon be able to hack any system and mobilize “real power and resources” for malign purposes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026
And I sure didn’t want a thief to use Henrietta’s powers for evil purposes.
From "Unusual Chickens for the Exceptional Poultry Farmer" by Kelly Jones
QCi said Monday that the foundry, “currently purposed for research and development and prototyping,” had begun to generate early revenue, though contributions weren’t broken out in the report.
From Barron's ● May 11, 2026
If the purposed minimum pay rate does go through, it'll be the first of its kind nationwide.
From Salon ● Jul. 7, 2023
“There are no awards. There are no winners or losers tonight. It’s just our passion that makes our heartbeat faster. It makes our life so much more greatly purposed with joy and fulfillment.”
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 5, 2023
“There are no awards. There are no winners or losers tonight. It’s just our passion that makes our heart beat faster. It makes our life so much more greatly purposed with joy and fulfillment.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 5, 2023
I do not know how, purposed with so high & noble Aims, we end thus in Ruin.
From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson
As ProPublica detailed in 2016, several state court systems have adopted a proprietary software that purports to put a probability on recidivism for sentencing purposing.
From Slate ● Apr. 8, 2021
I read with my watch upon the table, purposing to close my book at eleven o’clock.
From "Great Expectations" by Charles Dickens
Seeing, therefore, the prospect of any practical success so small, I returned to London, purposing to give the expedition up.
From The Glaciers of the Alps Being a narrative of excursions and ascents, etc. by John Tyndall
I was already aware, from the altered motion of the vessel, that her course had been changed, and could not doubt that the mutineers were purposing to sail back to the island we had quitted.
From Palm Tree Island by Herbert Strang
His papers yet lay tied up in a bundle at the bottom of the chest, where he had packed them; purposing to take them with him in his elopement.
From Wilhelm Meister's Apprenticeship and Travels, Vol. I (of 2) by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
