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ENGLISH · A WORD WITH POSSIBILITIES

state.

A condition; a set of circumstances applying at any given time.

5 characters1 syllables approx.English language

Meaning & usage

noun/steɪt/General-American, Received-Pronunciation
  1. A condition; a set of circumstances applying at any given time.

    countable · uncountable
    a state of being
    a state of emergency
  2. A condition; a set of circumstances applying at any given time. A complete description of a system, consisting of parameters that determine all properties of the system.

    countable · uncountable
  3. A condition; a set of circumstances applying at any given time. A mess; disorder; a bad condition or set of circumstances.

    colloquial · countable · singular · uncountable
    absolute state
    in a state
  4. A condition; a set of circumstances applying at any given time. The stable condition of a processor during a particular clock cycle.

    countable · uncountable
    In the fetch state, the address of the next instruction is placed on the address bus.
  5. A condition; a set of circumstances applying at any given time. The set of all parameters relevant to a computation.

    countable · uncountable
    The state here includes a set containing all names seen so far.
  6. A condition; a set of circumstances applying at any given time. The values of all parameters at some point in a computation.

    countable · uncountable
    A debugger can show the state of a program at any breakpoint.
  7. A condition; a set of circumstances applying at any given time. The physical property of matter as solid, liquid, gas or plasma.

    countable · uncountable
  8. A condition; a set of circumstances applying at any given time. Highest and stationary condition, as that of maturity between growth and decline, or as that of crisis between the increase and the abating of a disease; height; acme.

    countable · obsolete · uncountable
  9. High social standing or circumstance. Pomp, ceremony, or dignity.

    countable · uncountable
    in state
    The President's body will lie in state at the Capitol.
  10. High social standing or circumstance. Rank; condition; quality.

    countable · uncountable
  11. High social standing or circumstance. Condition of prosperity or grandeur; wealthy or prosperous circumstances; social importance.

    countable · uncountable
  12. High social standing or circumstance. A chair with a canopy above it, often standing on a dais; a seat of dignity; also, the canopy itself.

    countable · uncountable
  13. High social standing or circumstance. A great person, a dignitary; a lord or prince.

    countable · obsolete · uncountable
  14. High social standing or circumstance. Estate, possession.

    countable · obsolete · uncountable
  15. A polity or community. A sovereign country or city state with a central government acting as its head and operator; national issues and affairs as opposed to local ones.

    countable · uncountable
  16. A polity or community. A political division of a federation retaining a notable degree of autonomy, as in the United States, Mexico, Nigeria, or India.

    countable · uncountable
    His alibi is that he was out of state the night of the murder.
  17. A polity or community. A form of government other than a monarchy.

    countable · obsolete · uncountable
  18. A polity or community. A society larger than a tribe. A society large enough to form a state in the sense of a government.

    countable · uncountable
  19. An element of the range of the random variables that define a random process.

    countable · uncountable
  20. The lexical aspect (aktionsart) of verbs or predicates that do not change over time.

    countable · uncountable
Where this word comes from

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *steh₂- Proto-Indo-European *-tus Proto-Indo-European *stéh₂-tu-s ~ *sth₂-téw-s Proto-Italic *status Latin statuslbor. Old French estatbor. Middle English stat English state From Middle English stat (as a noun); adopted c. 1200 from both Old French estat and Latin stātus (“manner of standing, attitude, position, carriage, manner, dress, apparel; and other senses”), from stāre (“to stand”). Doublet of estate and status. The sense of "polity" develops in the 14th century. Compare French être, Greek στέω (stéo), Italian stare, Portuguese estar, Romanian sta, and Spanish estar. The verb is first attested around the beginning of the 16th century. Related to English stand. Displaced native Old English hād (“state, condition”).

verb/steɪt/General-American, Received-Pronunciation
  1. To declare to be a fact.

    transitive
    He stated that he was willing to help.
  2. To make known.

    transitive
    State your intentions.
Where this word comes from

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *steh₂- Proto-Indo-European *-tus Proto-Indo-European *stéh₂-tu-s ~ *sth₂-téw-s Proto-Italic *status Latin statuslbor. Old French estatbor. Middle English stat English state From Middle English stat (as a noun); adopted c. 1200 from both Old French estat and Latin stātus (“manner of standing, attitude, position, carriage, manner, dress, apparel; and other senses”), from stāre (“to stand”). Doublet of estate and status. The sense of "polity" develops in the 14th century. Compare French être, Greek στέω (stéo), Italian stare, Portuguese estar, Romanian sta, and Spanish estar. The verb is first attested around the beginning of the 16th century. Related to English stand. Displaced native Old English hād (“state, condition”).

adj/steɪt/General-American, Received-Pronunciation
  1. Stately.

    obsolete
Where this word comes from

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *steh₂- Proto-Indo-European *-tus Proto-Indo-European *stéh₂-tu-s ~ *sth₂-téw-s Proto-Italic *status Latin statuslbor. Old French estatbor. Middle English stat English state From Middle English stat (as a noun); adopted c. 1200 from both Old French estat and Latin stātus (“manner of standing, attitude, position, carriage, manner, dress, apparel; and other senses”), from stāre (“to stand”). Doublet of estate and status. The sense of "polity" develops in the 14th century. Compare French être, Greek στέω (stéo), Italian stare, Portuguese estar, Romanian sta, and Spanish estar. The verb is first attested around the beginning of the 16th century. Related to English stand. Displaced native Old English hād (“state, condition”).

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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.