Definition

1. Noun:

   • An identifying or descriptive marker attached to an object: A piece of paper, cloth, metal, or other material attached to an item to give information about it, such as its contents, owner, destination, or instructions.
   • A descriptive name or category applied to a person, group, or thing: A word or phrase used to classify or characterize someone or something.
   • A company that produces and sells recorded music: A brand or trademark under which music is marketed.
   • A radioactive isotope used to trace a chemical process: An atom with a distinctive property used to track the path of a chemical compound in a reaction or system.

2. Verb:

   • To attach a label to something: To fasten a tag or marker providing information.
   • To assign a descriptive word or category to someone or something: To describe or classify with a particular term, often in a way that is seen as simplistic or limiting.
   • To use a distinctive atom to trace a chemical compound: To introduce a radioactive or isotopically unusual atom into a molecule for tracking purposes.

Usage Examples

• Noun:

  • Please read the washing instructions on the label before cleaning the sweater.
  • He was given the label of a troublemaker, which was unfair.
  • She signed a contract with a major record label.
  • Scientists used a radioactive label to follow the metabolism of the drug.

• Verb:

  • Could you label all the boxes in the attic so we know what's inside?
  • The media often labels complex political movements with simplistic terms.
  • The compound was labeled with carbon-14 for the experiment.

Advanced Usage

• "To label someone/something as...": To categorize or describe someone/something in a specific, often definitive, way.

  • Historians are reluctant to label the era simply as a period of decline.

• "Private label" (Noun): A product manufactured by one company but sold under the brand name of another retailer.

  • This supermarket's private label coffee is surprisingly good.

Variants and Related Words

• Labeled/Labelled (Adj): Having a label attached; (in science) containing a distinctive tracer atom.

  • All chemicals must be properly labeled.
  • The labeled protein was easily detected.

• Labeling/Labelling (Noun): The action or process of attaching labels or assigning categories.

  • The labeling of food products is regulated by law.

• Mislabel (Verb): To label incorrectly.

  • The company had to recall products that were mislabeled.

Synonyms

• Noun: Tag, sticker, ticket, brand, designation, epithet, category.
• Verb: Tag, mark, identify, classify, categorize, brand, call.

Related Phrasal Verbs/Constructions

• Label with: To attach a label containing specific information.
  • Each sample was labeled with a unique code.

Related Idioms

• "To acquire a label": To be given a particular reputation or classification.

  • Early in his career, he acquired the label of a visionary.

• "Under the label of": Using a particular name or description as a guise or category.

  • Policies enacted under the label of "security" can sometimes restrict freedoms.

Noun

1. an identifying or descriptive marker that is attached to an object
2. a radioactive isotope that is used in a compound in order to trace the mechanism of a chemical reaction
3. trade name of a company that produces musical recordings
   • the artists and repertoire department of a recording label is responsible for finding new talent
4. a brief description given for purposes of identification
   • the label Modern is applied to many different kinds of architecture

Verb

1. distinguish (an element or atom) by using a radioactive isotope or an isotope of unusual mass for tracing through chemical reactions
2. distinguish (as a compound or molecule) by introducing a labeled atom
3. pronounce judgment on
   • They labeled him unfit to work here
4. attach a tag or label to
   • label these bottles
5. assign a label to; designate with a label
   • These students were labelled `learning disabled'