attribute
AT-rih-byoot
Attribute (noun) means a quality or characteristic that belongs to a person or thing. Example: “Patience is a valuable attribute for a teacher to have.”
noun
1
A quality or characteristic that belongs to a person or thing.
"Patience is a valuable attribute for a teacher to have."
"Honesty is the attribute I value most in a friend."
"Strong leadership is one attribute that sets her apart from other candidates."
2
A property or setting associated with a data object, in computing.
"Each HTML tag can have several attributes, like class or id."
"The program lets you change the colour attribute of each shape on screen."
"A database table stores each attribute of a customer in a separate column."
verb
1
To say that something is caused by or belongs to a particular source.
"The quote is often attributed to Mark Twain, though the origin is disputed."
"She attributes her success to hard work and a supportive family."
"Experts attributed the painting to a little-known artist from the same village."
How to use attribute
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishAs a noun, a quality something has; as a verb, to credit or assign something to a cause or source.
Common mistake
The noun is stressed on the first syllable (AT-tri-bute); the verb is stressed on the second (a-TRIB-ute).
Common pairings
key attribute
attribute to
positive attribute
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Word forms
- Plural
- attributes
- Third person singular
- attributes
- Past tense
- attributed
- Archaic forms
- attributest, attributedst, attributeth
Fill the gap
Can you complete this real example?
Patience is a valuable _____ for a teacher to have.
Etymology
From Latin attributus, past participle of attribuere, "to assign, bestow," from ad- ("to") plus tribuere ("to grant, bestow").
Synonyms
View more →Related words
Rhymes for attribute
See all rhymes for attribute →Frequently asked questions
What does “attribute” mean?
The word “attribute” means a quality or characteristic that belongs to a person or thing. In plain terms, as a noun, a quality something has; as a verb, to credit or assign something to a cause or source.
How do you pronounce “attribute”?
“Attribute” is pronounced AT-rih-byoot (/ˈæt.ɹɪˌbjut/ in IPA).
How do you use “attribute” in a sentence?
Here is “attribute” used in a sentence: “Patience is a valuable attribute for a teacher to have.”
What is another word for “attribute”?
Words with a similar meaning to “attribute” include refer.
What part of speech is “attribute”?
Depending on how it is used, “attribute” can be a noun and a verb.
Where does the word “attribute” come from?
The word “attribute” comes from Latin. From Latin attributus, past participle of attribuere, "to assign, bestow," from ad- ("to") plus tribuere ("to grant, bestow").
Is “attribute” a common word?
“Attribute” is an uncommon word in modern English, usually learned at around the B2 level.
How many meanings does “attribute” have?
“Attribute” has 3 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: a quality or characteristic that belongs to a person or thing.
What is the difference between attribute and characteristic?
Attribute and characteristic are close synonyms, both describing a quality that belongs to a person or thing, though attribute is also commonly used in computing to mean a property or setting associated with a data object. Characteristic is used mainly in the general, everyday sense rather than the technical computing sense.
What is the difference between attribute as a noun and attribute as a verb?
As a noun, an attribute is a quality or characteristic belonging to a person or thing, or a property of a data object in computing. As a verb, to attribute something means to say it is caused by or belongs to a particular source, as in attributing a quote to its author.
How is attribute used in computing?
In computing, an attribute refers to a property or setting associated with a data object, such as a formatting attribute in a document or a field in a database record, distinct from its general sense of a personal quality.
