Classifying: meaning, definitions and examples

When you need to place items or ideas into distinct groups based on shared characteristics.

• Scientists are classifying insects into different species
• The librarian is classifying the books according to their genres

To label or name different groups of things to make it easier to understand them.

• We need to categorize the expenses to see where our money is going
• Teachers often categorize student performance into levels like 'excellent' or 'needs improvement'

When gathering similar items or people together without necessarily using formal criteria.

• The children are grouped by their age
• The manager grouped the tasks based on their urgency

To arrange items in a particular order, often by their value or size.

• He likes to sort his coins by year
• Let's sort these files alphabetically

To arrange items or plans in a structured, orderly way.

• She needs to organize her desk before she can start working
• We should organize the meeting to discuss the new project

Used when you need to systematically arrange or organize something based on specific criteria.

• The scientist spent the afternoon classifying different types of insects.
• We are classifying the documents according to their level of importance.

Used when you are designating tasks, roles, or giving specific responsibilities to people or things.

• The teacher will assign the homework for the weekend.
• They assigned the new project to the junior team.

Used when you need to place items or people into categories based on shared characteristics or themes.

• The librarian will help you categorize these books by genre.
• We need to categorize the expenses for the annual report.

Used when you are arranging items in a systematic order, typically based on size, type, or alphabetical order. Informal compared to 'classifying' or 'categorize'.

• Please help me sort these papers into piles.
• They sorted the recyclables into separate bins.

Typically used when you are putting things in a particular order or position, usually in a physical or organized space.

• She arranged the books on the shelf by size.
• He helped arrange the chairs for the meeting.

This is used when you need to systematically organize things into categories or groups based on common characteristics.

• Classifying the books by genre makes it easier to find what you want.
• The scientist is classifying the plant species based on their physical traits.

This word is used when you are making an educated guess about what might happen in the future based on current knowledge or data.

• The weather service can predict the likelihood of rain for tomorrow.
• It's hard to predict how the stock market will perform.

This is typically used when you are allocating tasks or roles to people or things.

• The manager will assign tasks to each team member.
• The teacher will assign homework at the end of the lesson.

This is often used in a similar sense to 'classifying' but tends to be more informal and can be used in everyday situations.

• You can categorize these files by date to keep them organized.
• It's easier to categorize the expenses to track where your money is going.

This is used when you need to recognize or ascertain the nature of something.

• It's important to identify the problem before trying to solve it.
• Can you identify the person in this photograph?