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ENGLISH · A WORD WITH POSSIBILITIES

purpose.

The end for which something is done, is made or exists.

7 characters2 syllables approx.English language

Meaning & usage

noun/ˈpɜː.pəs/Received-Pronunciation/ˈpɝ.pəs/Canada, General-American/ˈpɜː.pəs/Australia/ˈpøː.pəs/New-Zealand
  1. The end for which something is done, is made or exists.

    countable · uncountable
    What is the purpose of your visit?
    The device can be used for both civilian and military purposes.
  2. Function, role.

    countable · uncountable
    The exceptionally small gate-leg table served the purpose of a tea table admirably.
  3. meaning for existing or doing something.

    countable · uncountable
  4. Resolution; determination.

    countable · uncountable
  5. The subject of discourse; the point at issue.

    countable · obsolete · uncountable
Where this word comes from

From Middle English purpos, from Old French purposer (“to propose”) (with conjugation altered based on poser), from Latin prō- (“forth”) + pōnere (“place, put”), hence Latin prōpōnō, prōpōnere. By surface analysis, pur- + pose (“halt, pause, put, place”).

verb/ˈpɜː.pəs/Received-Pronunciation/ˈpɝ.pəs/Canada, General-American/ˈpɜː.pəs/Australia/ˈpøː.pəs/New-Zealand
  1. To have or set as one's purpose or aim; resolve to accomplish; intend; plan.

    transitive
  2. To have (an) intention, purpose, or design; to intend; to mean.

    intransitive
  3. To discourse.

    intransitive · obsolete
Where this word comes from

From Middle English purposen, from Old French purposer (“to propose”).

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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.

Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.