rhizoverbBeta
DictionaryclassificationGrouping into categories
noun

classification

klas-ih-fih-KAY-shuhn/ˌklæsɪfɪˈkeɪʃn/

The sorting of things into defined categories.

The leaves' classification separates them into groups according to their different shapes.

Leaves sorted by type.
Etymology
classFrenchclass, category
+ificFrenchmake, form into
+ationFrenchaction or result

The pieces express the action of forming classes: grouping things by shared characteristics. The meaning also extended to the result of that action—the arrangement or system of categories produced.

In context

Town of Tawiah23:07
making racial classification and segregation a nationwide meticulously enforced law that controlled every part of life. During apartheid, South Africans were classified into rigid racial categories. White, the ruling privileged class
The Dichotomy of Being Black, African and Outside of the US | Amanda Seales, Tyla, Kemi Badenoch

More examples

  • Each document receives a security classification.
  • The new evidence changed the animal's classification.
  • The library uses a subject-based classification system.

Forms

classification · classifications

Similar words

identification
Identification determines what something is; classification places it within a category system.