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From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.44 [gcide]:
Describe \De*scribe"\, verb (used without an object) To use the faculty of describing; to give a description; as, Milton describes with uncommon force and beauty.
From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.44 [gcide]:
Describe \De*scribe"\, verb (used with an object) [imp. & p. p. {Described}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Describing}.] [L. describere, descriptum; de- + scribere to write: cf. OE. descriven, OF. descrivre, F. d['e]crire. See {Scribe}, and cf. {Descry}.]
1. To represent by drawing; to draw a plan of; to delineate; to trace or mark out; as, to describe a circle by the compasses; a torch waved about the head in such a way as to describe a circle.
2. To represent by words written or spoken; to give an account of; to make known to others by words or signs; as, the geographer describes countries and cities.
3. To distribute into parts, groups, or classes; to mark off; to class. [Obs.]
Passed through the land, and described it by cities into seven parts in a book. --Josh. xviii. 9.
Syn: To set forth; represent; delineate; relate; recount; narrate; express; explain; depict; portray; chracterize.
From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:
describe
verb
1: give a description of; "He drew an elaborate plan of attack" [syn: {depict}, {draw}]
2: to give an account or representation of in words; "Discreet Italian police described it in a manner typically continental" [syn: {report}, {account}]
3: identify as in botany or biology, for example [syn: {identify}, {discover}, {key}, {key out}, {distinguish}, {name}]
4: make a mark or lines on a surface; "draw a line"; "trace the outline of a figure in the sand" [syn: {trace}, {draw}, {line}, {delineate}]
From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:
58 Moby Thesaurus words for "describe": be characteristic, bring to life, character, characterize, chronicle, construe, define, delineate, demarcate, depict, detail, diagnose, differentiate, distinguish, draw, earmark, evoke, explain, express, give words to, identify, interpret, keynote, label, limn, mark, mark off, mark out, narrate, outline, paint, picture, portray, read, read into, recite, recount, relate, render, report, represent, retail, set apart, set forth, set the pace, set the tone, sketch, sound the keynote, specify, style, take, take it that, take to mean, trace, traverse, understand, understand by, write
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