Standard Lemma guide

classify

verb · 6 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • UK: /ˈklæs.ɪ.faɪ/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • US: /ˈklæs.əˌfaɪ/
  • CMU ARPABET: K L AE1 S AH0 F AY2 Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

verb

Meaning 1

to identify by or divide into classes; to categorize

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • Should we classify "make up" as an idiom or as a phrasal verb?

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

verb

Meaning 2

to declare something a secret, especially a government secret

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • They decided to classify that information.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

verb

Meaning 3

To make classy

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

verb

Meaning 4

arrange or order by classes or categories

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • How would you classify these pottery shards--are they prehistoric?

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: class, sort, assort, sort out, separate

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: categorize, categorise

Narrower terms: unitize, unitise, catalogue, catalog, isolate, refer, reclassify, size, dichotomize, dichotomise, pigeonhole, stereotype, stamp, group, grade, count, number

5

verb

Meaning 5

assign to a class or kind

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • How should algae be classified?
  • People argue about how to relegate certain mushrooms

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: relegate

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: assign, attribute

6

verb

Meaning 6

declare unavailable, as for security reasons

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • Classify these documents

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: declassify

Broader terms: restrict

History

Etymology

From French classifier. By surface analysis, class + -ify.

Across languages

Translations

73 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Arabic: صَنَّفَ (ṣannafa) — identify or divide into classes
  • Arabic: قَسَّمَ (qassama) — identify or divide into classes
  • Armenian: դասակարգել (dasakargel) — identify or divide into classes
  • Armenian: դասդասել (dasdasel) — identify or divide into classes
  • Asturian: clasificar — identify or divide into classes
  • Belarusian: класіфікава́ць (klasifikavácʹ) — identify or divide into classes
  • Bulgarian: класифицирам (klasificiram) — identify or divide into classes
  • Catalan: classificar — identify or divide into classes
  • Chinese Mandarin: 分類 /分类 (fēnlèi) — identify or divide into classes
  • Chinese Mandarin: 分等 (fēnděng) — identify or divide into classes
  • Czech: klasifikovat — identify or divide into classes
  • Danish: klassificere — identify or divide into classes
  • Dutch: rangschikken — identify or divide into classes
  • Dutch: classificeren — identify or divide into classes
  • Esperanto: klasifiki — identify or divide into classes
  • Estonian: klassifitseerima — identify or divide into classes
  • Estonian: liigitama — identify or divide into classes
  • Finnish: luokitella — identify or divide into classes
  • Finnish: jäsentää — identify or divide into classes
  • Finnish: lajitella — identify or divide into classes
  • Finnish: ryhmittää — identify or divide into classes
  • French: classifier — identify or divide into classes
  • Galician: clasificar — identify or divide into classes
  • German: einordnen — identify or divide into classes
  • German: einstufen — identify or divide into classes
  • German: unterteilen — identify or divide into classes
  • German: klassifizieren — identify or divide into classes
  • Hungarian: osztályoz — identify or divide into classes
  • Ido: klasigar — identify or divide into classes
  • Indonesian: mengelaskan — identify or divide into classes
  • Indonesian: mengklasifikasi — identify or divide into classes
  • Indonesian: mengklasifikasikan — identify or divide into classes
  • Indonesian: mengelompokkan — identify or divide into classes
  • Irish: rangaigh — identify or divide into classes
  • Japanese: 分類する (bunrui suru) — identify or divide into classes
  • Khmer: ចាត់ថ្នាក់ (cat thnak) — identify or divide into classes
  • Latin: discribō — identify or divide into classes
  • Latvian: klasificēt — identify or divide into classes
  • Malay: mengelaskan — identify or divide into classes
  • Malay: mengklasifikasikan — identify or divide into classes
  • Māori: whakarōpū — identify or divide into classes
  • Māori: kōmaka — identify or divide into classes
  • Marathi: वर्गीकरण करणे (vargīkraṇ karṇe) — identify or divide into classes
  • Mongolian: ангилах (angilax) — identify or divide into classes
  • Persian: نوعردن — identify or divide into classes
  • Persian: سانردن — identify or divide into classes
  • Polish: klasyfikować — identify or divide into classes
  • Portuguese: classificar — identify or divide into classes
  • Romanian: clasifica — identify or divide into classes
  • Russian: классифици́ровать (klassificírovatʹ) — identify or divide into classes
  • Serbo-Croatian: razvrstati — identify or divide into classes
  • Serbo-Croatian: klasificirati — identify or divide into classes
  • Spanish: clasificar — identify or divide into classes
  • Spanish: encasillar — identify or divide into classes
  • Swahili: -ainisha — identify or divide into classes
  • Swedish: klassificera — identify or divide into classes
  • Thai: จําแนก — identify or divide into classes
  • Ukrainian: класифікува́ти (klasyfikuváty) — identify or divide into classes
  • Vietnamese: phân loại — identify or divide into classes
  • Armenian: գաղտնիացնել (gaġtniacʻnel) — declare secret
  • Belarusian: засакрэ́чваць (zasakréčvacʹ) — declare secret
  • Belarusian: засакрэ́ціць (zasakrécicʹ) — declare secret
  • Chinese Mandarin: 定為機密 /定为机密 (dìngwéi jīmì) — declare secret
  • Finnish: luokitella salaiseksi — declare secret
  • French: classifier — declare secret
  • German: als vertraulich / geheim einstufen — declare secret
  • Mongolian: нууцлах (nuuclax) — declare secret
  • Portuguese: classificar — declare secret
  • Russian: засекре́чивать (zasekréčivatʹ) — declare secret
  • Russian: засекре́тить (zasekrétitʹ) — declare secret
  • Spanish: clasificar — declare secret
  • Ukrainian: засекре́чувати (zasekréčuvaty) — declare secret
  • Ukrainian: засекре́тити (zasekrétyty) — declare secret
Real reading context

classify in complete knowledge articles