the condition of a person or thing, as with respect to circumstances or attributes: a state of health.
the condition of matter with respect to structure, form, constitution, phase, or the like: water in a gaseous state.
status, rank, or position in life; station: He dresses in a manner befitting his state.
the style of living befitting a person of wealth and high rank: to travel in state.
a particular condition of mind or feeling: to be in an excited state.
an abnormally tense, nervous, or perturbed condition: He's been in a state since hearing about his brother's death.
a politically unified people occupying a definite territory; nation.
the territory, or one of the territories, of a government.
(sometimes initial capital letter) any of the bodies politic which together make up a federal union, as in the United States of America.
the body politic as organized for civil rule and government (distinguished from church).
the operations or activities of a central civil government: affairs of state.
(initial capital letter)Also called State Department.Informal. the Department of State.
Printing. a set of copies of an edition of a publication which differ from others of the same printing because of additions, corrections, or transpositions made during printing or at any time before publication.
the States,Informal. the United States (usually used outside its borders): After a year's study in Spain, he returned to the States.
adjective
of or relating to the central civil government or authority.
made, maintained, or chartered by or under the authority of one of the commonwealths that make up a federal union: a state highway; a state bank.
characterized by, attended with, or involving ceremony: a state dinner.
used on or reserved for occasions of ceremony.
verb (used with object),stat·ed,stat·ing.
to declare definitely or specifically: She stated her position on the case.
to set forth formally in speech or writing: to state a hypothesis.
to set forth in proper or definite form: to state a problem.
to say.
to fix or settle, as by authority.
Idioms for state
lie in state, (of a corpse) to be exhibited publicly with honors before burial: The president's body lay in state for two days.
Origin of state
First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English stat (noun), partly from estat estate, partly from Latin status “condition” (see status); the meanings in defs. 7-11 derive from Latin status (rērum) ) “state (of things)” or status (reī pūblicae) “state (of the republic)”
SYNONYMS FOR state
3 standing.
17 stately, ceremonial, imposing, dignified.
19 aver, assert, asseverate, affirm.
23 determine.
SEE SYNONYMS FOR state ON THESAURUS.COM
synonym study for state
1. State,condition,situation,status are terms for existing circumstances or surroundings. State is the general word, often with no concrete implications or material relationships: the present state of affairs.Condition carries an implication of a relationship to causes and circumstances: The conditions made flying impossible.Situation suggests an arrangement of circumstances, related to one another and to the character of a person: He was master of the situation.Status carries official or legal implications; it suggests a complete picture of interrelated circumstances as having to do with rank, position, standing, a stage reached in progress, etc.: the status of negotiations.19. See maintain.
historical usage of state
The history of the English noun state is complicated. It derives from both Old French and Latin. The Old French noun is estat, estate “general state or condition (material, bodily, moral, mental),” also the source of the English word estate “landed property.” Estat is a normal French development from Latin status “a standing, stance, physical state or circumstances, (public) order.” Latin status derives from the verb stāre “to stand,” from the very widespread Proto-Indo-European root stā- (and its many extensions) “to stand,” source of Greek histánai (from prehistoric sistánai with reduplication), Germanic (Old English) standan (English stand ), and Slavic (Polish) stać. The e in estat is called a prothetic e ( prothetikós means “prefixed” in Greek). The prothetic e appears in the Romance languages of France (French, Provençal), and the Iberian Peninsula (Castilian, Portuguese, Catalan), and in Logudorese (the most conservative dialect of the Sardinian language). For example, Latin schola “school” appears as école in French (from earlier escole ), escòla in Provençal, escuela in Castilian, escola in Portuguese and Catalan, and iscola in Logudorese. The prothetic e was never common in Italy except to avoid ungainly consonant clusters; thus Italian la scuola “the school” becomes per iscuola “for school.” Prothesis persists in modern Spanish, Portuguese, and Catalan: “station” is estación,estação, and estació, respectively, but it is no longer productive in French (“station” is station ) or Italian ( stazione ). Prothesis has never been common in Romanian (“school” is şcoală ).
OTHER WORDS FROM state
stat·a·ble,state·a·ble,adjectivean·ti·state,adjectivecoun·ter·state,verb,coun·ter·stat·ed,coun·ter·stat·ing.outstate,verb (used with object),out·stat·ed,out·stat·ing.
Dental leaders barnstormed the state, and cities began to fluoridate.
Anti-Fluoriders Are The OG Anti-Vaxxers|Michael Schulson|July 27, 2016|DAILY BEAST
This week, Florida became the 36th state to allow same-sex marriage.
Jeb Bush’s Unseen Anti-Gay Marriage Emails|Jackie Kucinich|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
But if you have a hearing and you prove that someone is mature enough, well then that state interest evaporates.
Should Teens Have The Right To Die?|Brandy Zadrozny|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Duke was a state representative whose neo-Nazi alliances were disgorged in media reports during his run for governor in 1991.
The Price of Steve Scalise’s Silence|Jason Berry|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
At the time (and until 1913), U.S. senators were not popularly elected but were selected by the state legislature.
The Black Man Who Replaced Jefferson Davis in the Senate|Philip Dray|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
It is always of a deep colour, and is doubtless introduced in the state of cercaria, when the animal is drinking.
Animal Parasites and Messmates|P. J. Van Beneden
One of the "owned" senators representing a decadent New England state, himself master of the state political machine.
Theft|Jack London
There was nothing in the state of the atmosphere to attract special attention.
A History of Epidemics in Britain, Volume II (of 2)|Charles Creighton
You state here, 'upon cool, deliberate inquiry': what was that cool, deliberate inquiry?
The Works of the Right Honourable Edmund Burke, Vol. XII. (of XII.)|Edmund Burke
He wrought a state out of tribal kinship and fostered an independence and self-reliance which no oppression could destroy.
Optimism|Helen Keller
British Dictionary definitions for state
state
/ (steɪt) /
noun
the condition of a person, thing, etc, with regard to main attributes
the structure, form, or constitution of somethinga solid state
any mode of existence
position in life or society; estate
ceremonious style, as befitting wealth or dignityto live in state
a sovereign political power or community
the territory occupied by such a community
the sphere of power in such a communityaffairs of state
(often capital)one of a number of areas or communities having their own governments and forming a federation under a sovereign government, as in the US
(often capital)the body politic of a particular sovereign power, esp as contrasted with a rival authority such as the Church
obsoletea class or order; estate
informala nervous, upset, or excited condition (esp in the phrase in a state)
lie in state(of a body) to be placed on public view before burial
state of affairsa situation; present circumstances or condition
state of playthe current situation
adjective
controlled or financed by a statestate university
of, relating to, or concerning the StateState trial
involving ceremony or concerned with a ceremonious occasionstate visit
verb(tr; may take a clause as object)
to articulate in words; utter
to declare formally or publiclyto state one's innocence
to resolve
Derived forms of state
statableorstateable, adjectivestatehood, noun
Word Origin for state
C13: from Old French estat, from Latin status a standing, from stāre to stand