label
Americannoun
-
labels
plural
-
a slip of paper, cloth, or other material, marked or inscribed, for attachment to something to indicate its manufacturer, nature, ownership, destination, etc..
The medicine bottle should have a label on it with the dosing instructions.
-
a short word or phrase descriptive of a person, group, intellectual movement, etc..
The label “progressive” can be used to describe many different political movements.
-
a word or phrase indicating that what follows belongs in a particular category or classification.
The label “Formal” marks words used in academic or business contexts.
-
Architecture. a molding or dripstone over a door or window, especially one that extends horizontally across the top of the opening and vertically downward for a certain distance at the sides.
-
-
a brand or trademark under which something, such as clothing or music, is manufactured and sold.
She records under her own label.
Chanel has launched a new label for ready-to-wear couture.
-
the manufacturer using such a label.
All the big-name labels will have a runway show during Fashion Week.
Major labels are feeling the economic crunch and are no longer signing small acts or individual musicians.
-
-
Heraldry. a narrow horizontal strip with a number of downward extensions of rectangular or dovetail form, usually placed in chief as the cadency mark of an eldest son.
-
Obsolete. a strip or narrow piece of anything.
verb (used with object)
-
labels,
present (3rd person singular)
-
labeled,
past participle, past
-
labelled,
past participle, past (especially British)
-
labeling,
present participle
-
labelling
present participle (especially British)
-
to affix a label to; mark with a label.
The drawers have all been labeled with their contents.
-
to designate or describe by or on a label.
The bottle was labeled poison.
-
to put in a certain class; classify.
It's easy to label someone as difficult and stop trying, but curiosity and compassion can often get you further.
-
Chemistry. Also to incorporate a radioactive or heavy isotope into (a molecule) in order to make traceable.
noun
-
a piece of paper, card, or other material attached to an object to identify it or give instructions or details concerning its ownership, use, nature, destination, etc; tag
-
a brief descriptive phrase or term given to a person, group, school of thought, etc
the label "Romantic" is applied to many different kinds of poetry
-
a word or phrase heading a piece of text to indicate or summarize its contents
-
a trademark or company or brand name on certain goods, esp, formerly, on gramophone records
-
another name for dripstone
-
heraldry a charge consisting of a horizontal line across the chief of a shield with three or more pendants: the charge of an eldest son
-
computing a group of characters, such as a number or a word, appended to a particular statement in a program to allow its unique identification
-
chem a radioactive element used in a compound to trace the mechanism of a chemical reaction
verb
-
to fasten a label to
-
to mark with a label
-
to describe or classify in a word or phrase
to label someone a liar
-
to make (one or more atoms in a compound) radioactive, for use in determining the mechanism of a reaction
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
labelernoun
-
labellernoun
-
prelabelnoun
-
relabelverb (used with object)
-
nonlabelingadjective
-
nonlabellingadjective
-
unlabeledadjective
-
unlabelledadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
labelsimple
-
labelssimple
-
have labeledperfect
-
have labelledperfect
-
has labeledperfect
-
has labelledperfect
-
am labelingprogressive
-
am labellingprogressive
-
are labelingprogressive
-
are labellingprogressive
-
is labelingprogressive
-
is labellingprogressive
-
have been labelingperfect progressive
-
have been labellingperfect progressive
-
has been labelingperfect progressive
-
has been labellingperfect progressive
Past
-
labeledsimple
-
labelledsimple
-
had labeledperfect
-
had labelledperfect
-
was labelingprogressive
-
was labellingprogressive
-
were labelingprogressive
-
were labellingprogressive
-
had been labelingperfect progressive
-
had been labellingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of label
First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English, from Middle French: “ribbon,” perhaps from Germanic; cf. lap 1
Explanation
The saying “labels are for jars not people” means it’s OK to put a description on a jar so you know what’s inside (a label), but it’s not okay to judge people by attaching a label, or description to them, such as "nerd," "jock," or "burnout." Label is a busy word. It refers to the paper or identifying marks on a jar that tells you something about what’s inside the jar. Put such an identifier on the jar, and you label it. Related to that is a judgment about someone or something, a label. When you call yourself a superstar, you label yourself. Finally, you can use label as a short form of recording label, a company that produces musical recordings.
Vocabulary lists containing label
Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Talk Like Shakespeare Day, List 1
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Common Five-letter Words for Wordle, List 5
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Action said the term wasn’t used as a label for any patients.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 21, 2026
Cool promptly in shallow containers, label and refrigerate.
From Salon ● Oct. 20, 2026
"Of course, you can get reputable companies who do third-party testing and make sure that what you see on the label is what is in the inside, but that's not always the case," she says.
From BBC ● Oct. 15, 2026
After a decade of terrifying squares, avoiding religious stalkers and navigating label purgatory, Twin Temple might finally be at the precipice of what they’ve long manifested — rock stardom.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 13, 2026
You know you’re creepy as hell for swiping his address label, right?
From "What If It's Us" by Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera
One character even looks at the past and ruefully labels it the “bad old days.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 22, 2026
Luxury names have been navigating a tough market in recent years, mainly due to sliding demand for high-end goods, especially in China, where European brands also face rising competition from local labels.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 22, 2026
He was indicted by a federal grand jury in Florida last month for selling more than five million counterfeit shipping labels to thousands of US customers over the years.
From BBC ● Oct. 21, 2026
Not only can shipping labels and declared insurance values reveal their potential contents, “the simple name PSA or Collectors in the address box is the threat,” Rovell wrote.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 20, 2026
It was painful to hear childish voices using such names and labels.
From "Hattie Big Sky" by Kirby Larson
He isn’t a Joel Embiid-like figure whose struggles on the court and history of missed games make him easily labeled as “lazy.”
From Salon ● Oct. 21, 2026
The film, labeled a documentary, grossed $15 million this weekend, making it the second-highest-grossing opening for the genre.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 20, 2026
By commodity trade, Hayes is mainly referring to the memory stocks that have been labeled the picks-and-shovels play of the AI infrastructure boom.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 15, 2026
New York, Boston and Philadelphia were all in the firing line of the "Nor'easter" -- so labeled for its northeasterly winds -- as authorities warned of potential major flooding and road closures.
From Barron's ● Sep. 26, 2026
Agent Fiona steps out from a stall labeled Winged Chariot.
From "Amari and the Night Brothers" by B.B. Alston
Viewed by many in England as there for the taking in last winter's Ashes despite a 4-1 win, they are also labelled too old by many observers at home.
From BBC ● Oct. 11, 2026
The French group runs a scheme under which authors can get their books assessed and then labelled as a "human creation" for a small fee, with about 200 works so far given the stamp.
From Barron's ● Oct. 9, 2026
Publishers sign up to the scheme for a fee, and can then request to get their authors' books labelled with the Books By People mark.
From Barron's ● Oct. 9, 2026
The motion attracted criticism from opposition parties and some Jewish groups, who labelled it an "attack on the Jewish community".
From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2026
Poirot finished his search by opening the little cupboard above the washbasin and taking a rapid glance at its contents—a sponge, face cream, powder and a small bottle labelled trional.
From "Murder on the Orient Express" by Agatha Christie
The first-of-its-kind research, published in the journal Nutrition Research, could also help consumers better understand the distinction between different types of trans fats and provide greater clarity around labeling policies that may contribute to confusion.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 8, 2026
Hundreds of posts labeling me misogynistic and bigoted appeared on Cornell’s anonymous chat forums.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 29, 2026
Manufacturers counter with front-of-the-package labeling that highlights added vitamins and minerals or the “heart healthy” benefits of supplied fiber.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 17, 2026
It’s also usually the manufacturer’s responsibility to ensure everything on those products’ labeling is accurate.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 16, 2026
It’s likely Holmes also wanted Pitezel to gather whatever intelligence he could about the cure and its labeling, so that he could mimic the product and sell it through his own mail-order drug company.
From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson
For some parents the countdown to starting school means buying uniforms, labelling water bottles and trying to squeeze in one last summer holiday.
From BBC ● Oct. 11, 2026
Airlink's flying feat divided opinion with some labelling the startling manoeuvre reckless, while others praised the precision and expertise on display.
From BBC ● Sep. 2, 2026
That month several major music industry organisations unveiled a labelling system for content created with generative AI that they would like to see widely adopted.
From Barron's ● Aug. 25, 2026
Some said they would post in exchange for free food and drink, without an extra payment on top - and five of those said they would post without labelling the content as an advert.
From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026
The living-room; what a good job of labelling that was now.
From "Fahrenheit 451" by Ray Bradbury
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
