characterize

(also UK -ise)

/ˈkærəktəraɪz/ verb [T]

Definition

TYPICAL › to be typical of someone or something: [often passive] Her behaviour in class has been characterized by rudeness and laziness.

DESCRIBE › to describe or show someone or something in a particular way: Historians have characterized the age as a period of great change.

(Definition of characterize verb from the Cambridge Learner's Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

If a reason, argument or explanation holds water, it is true

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