Apedia

 To Ascribe Person To  From  Sth Sb Verb

Title ascribe
Text
Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary
as·cribe
 \\ə-ˈskrīb\\ transitive verb 
(as·cribed ; as·crib·ing)
 ETYMOLOGY  Middle English, from Latin ascribere, from ad- + scribere to write — more at 
scribe
 DATE  15th century
: to refer to a supposed cause, source, or author
• as·crib·able 
 \\-ˈskrī-bə-bəl\\ adjective
Synonyms.
  
ascribe
attribute
assign
impute
credit
 mean to lay something to the account of a person or thing. 
ascribe
 suggests an inferring or conjecturing of cause, quality, authorship
      forged paintings formerly ascribed to masters
  
attribute
 suggests less tentativeness than 
ascribe
, less definiteness than 
assign
      attributed to Rembrandt but possibly done by an associate
  
assign
 implies ascribing with certainty or after deliberation
      assigned the bones to the Cretaceous Period
  
impute
 suggests ascribing something that brings discredit by way of accusation or blame
      tried to impute sinister motives to my actions
  
credit
 implies ascribing a thing or especially an action to a person or other thing as its agent, source, or explanation
      credited his teammates for his success
English Etymology
ascribe
  mid-14c.ascrive, from 
O.Fr
http://O.Fr
. ascrivre "to attribute, inscribe," from L. ascribere "to write in, to add to in a writing," from ad- "to" + scribere "to write" (see script). Spelling restored 16c.
Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary-牛津双解-OALD7
ascribe
ascribe E5skraib / verb PHRASAL VERBS 
 a'scribe sth to sb 
   to consider or state that a book, etc. was written by a particular person
   认为…是(某人)所写
   SYN  
attribute
 :
   This play is usually ascribed to Shakespeare. 
   通常认为这部剧是莎士比亚所写。 
 a'scribe sth to sb / sth (formal
1. to consider that sth is caused by a particular thing or person
   把…归因于;认为…是由于:
   He ascribed his failure to bad luck. 
   他认为自己的失败是运气不好。 
2. to consider that sb / sth has or should have a particular quality
   认为…具有:
   We ascribe great importance to these policies. 
   我们认为这些政策十分重要。 
   SYN  
attribute
 
 ascrib·able adj. ~ to sb / sth :
   Their success is ascribable to the quality of their goods. 
   他们的成功在于商品的质量。 
 ascrip·tion E5skripFn / noun [C, U] ~ (to sb / sth) : 
   the ascription of meaning to objects and events 
   事物所赋有的内涵 
Webster's Third New International Dictionary, Unabridged
as·cribe
\əˈskrīb also aˈ-\ transitive verb
(-ed/-ing/-s)
Etymology: Middle English ascriben, alteration (influenced by Latin ascribere) of ascriven, from Middle French ascrivre, from Latin ascribere, adscribere to ascribe, add to, from ad- + scribere to write — more at 
scribe
1. : to refer especially to a supposed cause, source, or author :
assign
attribute
 < it is conventional to ascribe this mastery to the development of scientific method — P.W.Bridgman >
 < in so far as we can ascribe those changes to individuals — Christopher Hollis >
2. obsolete : to add in writing : 
subscribe
3. obsolete : 
inscribe
dedicate
Synonyms: 
 
attribute
assign
refer
credit
accredit
impute
charge
ascribe
may suggest tentative, conjectural, inferential, or accustomed indication of cause or characteristic
  < they have ascribed their victories — in superstitious terms — to the operations of fortune — A.J.Toynbee >
  < disinclined to ascribe to her more than an indiscreet friendship with Wildeve — Thomas Hardy >
  
attribute
 may imply less of the tentative than ascribe; in its suggestion it falls between 
ascribe
 and 
assign
  < this knowledge was partly communicated by visions and revelations, to which St. Paul attributed some importance — W.R.Inge >
  < the French had then given up their conventional trick of attributing Eleanor's acts to her want of morals — Henry Adams >
  
assign
 may suggest the certainty and definiteness of cause, characterization, or placement that comes with deliberate consideration
  < more than one rejoinder declared that the importance I here assigned to criticism was excessive — Matthew Arnold >
  < they bore a strong likeness to the poems of Henry Vaughan the Silurist, and he concluded that they must be assigned to Vaughan — A.T.Quiller-Couch >
  
refer
, now less frequent in this sense, suggests explaining or characterizing by adducing an ultimate cause of major significance or by subsuming in a comprehensive group
  < I am convinced that at least one half of their bad manners may be referred to their education — A.T.Quiller-Couch >
 
credit
 and 
accredit
 usually suggest favorable ascription bringing credit, although they may be used in unfavorable situations
  < I am sure both parties credited them with too much idealism and too little plain horse sense — Rose Macaulay >
  < literary style … is credited with being a mysterious preservative for subject matter which no longer interests — T.S.Eliot >
  < several Bangor houses have been accredited to Bulfinch — American Guide Series: Maine >
  
impute
 is likely to be used with discreditable ascription ranging from accusation to implication
  < you imputed mean motives to them for giving such advice and cowardice to me for listening to them — Oscar Wilde >
  < no one should … find it necessary to impute to the critic … a puritanic way — F.R.Leavis >
  Unlike 
impute
charge
 always suggests unfavorable ascription, usually in direct accusation
  < the tyrannies … charged upon the New England oligarchy — V.L.Parrington >
  < crimes as base as any charged on me — William Cowper >

Learn with these flashcards. Click next, previous, or up to navigate to more flashcards for this subject.

Next card: Arrival  the arrival  act coming late time dictionary

Previous card: Asexual sexual sex adjective an  organs  not functional

Up to card list: English learning