Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • transitive verb To draw or depict.
  • transitive verb To describe or characterize in words.
  • transitive verb To mark, form, or show the outline or border of.
  • transitive verb To establish the position of (a border).
  • transitive verb To show or contain a distinguishing characteristic of; distinguish.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • To exhibit or mark out in lines; sketch or represent in outline: as, to delineate the form of the earth or a diagram.
  • To represent pictorially; draw a likeness of; portray; depict.
  • To describe; represent to the mind or understanding; exhibit it likeness of in words: as, to delineate character.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • adjective rare Delineated; portrayed.
  • transitive verb To indicate by lines drawn in the form or figure of; to represent by sketch, design, or diagram; to sketch out; to portray; to picture; in drawing and engraving, to represent in lines, as with the pen, pencil, or graver; hence, to represent with accuracy and minuteness. See delineation.
  • transitive verb To portray to the mind or understanding by words; to set forth; to describe.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • verb To sketch out, draw or trace an outline.
  • verb To depict, represent with pictures.
  • verb To describe or depict with words or gestures.
  • verb To outline or mark out.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • adjective represented accurately or precisely
  • verb make a mark or lines on a surface
  • verb describe in vivid detail
  • verb show the form or outline of
  • verb determine the essential quality of
  • verb trace the shape of

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Latin dēlīneāre, dēlīneāt- : dē-, de- + līnea, line, thread; see line.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Latin delineatus, past participle of dēlīneo ("to sketch out, to delineate"), from de- + līnea ("line")

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Examples

  • The inability to see is an inability to "delineate": a persistent equation in the novel ( "Over him hung a form which I cannot find words to describe," Walton says [152]).

    _Frankenstein_'s Cinematic Dream 2003

  • Professor has finished measuring, and is preparing to "delineate" me.

    Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 93, September 24, 1887 Various 1876

  • So the first order of business at the Trial of Barack Obama was to "delineate" (I think he just meant "delete") the most explosive charges -- treason and sedition -- from the indictment.

    News & Politics 2010

  • Canada's laws also seem to "delineate" medical quackery and fraud somewhat differently from those in the United States.

    Latest Articles Big Journalism 2010

  • So the first order of business at the Trial of Barack Obama was to "delineate" (I think he just meant "delete") the most explosive charges -- treason and sedition -- from the indictment.

    News & Politics 2010

  • That's because the DOT will better "delineate" crosswalks.

    New Haven Independent 2009

  • The other two pads Orion proposes would "delineate" where the company might have economic production of natural gas in the area, Harris said.

    Glenwood Springs Post Independent - Top Stories 2008

  • Elsewhere I have discussed the importance and volatility of the figure of the body in aesthetic discourse (see Redfield, ch. 2); for present purposes it will suffice to note the emphatically aesthetic vocabulary with which Victor seeks to "delineate" his creature’s monstrosity.

    _Frankenstein_'s Cinematic Dream 2003

  • Tallies of living languages differ widely depending on how evaluators delineate one language from another.

    The English Is Coming! Leslie Dunton-Downer 2010

  • Tallies of living languages differ widely depending on how evaluators delineate one language from another.

    The English Is Coming! Leslie Dunton-Downer 2010

Comments

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  • It seems like this word should mean to remove the lines that separate things, and lineate should mean to make draw those lines.

    September 2, 2007

  • verb: describe in detail

    After a brief summary of proper swimming technique, the coach delineated the specifics of each stroke, spending 30 minutes alone on the backstroke.

    October 19, 2016