What does "guide" mean?
Someone who guides, especially someone hired to show people around a place or an institution and offer information and explanation, or to lead them through dangerous terrain.
Guide
/ɡaɪd/ name, noun, verb
name, noun, verb ·Top 500 ·Elementary level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: Someone who guides, especially someone hired to show people around a place or an institution and offer information and explanation, or to lead them through dangerous terrain.
- Grammar: guide is listed as name, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: abecedarian, academic mentor, accompany, act as helper.
- Useful contrasts: disoriented, misdirected, confuse.
- Usage evidence: He acted as a guide while I was staying in Kyoto.
How to use "guide"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "guide" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "guide" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "guide" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "guide" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "guide" is acting as name, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "abecedarian" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "guide", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 Someone who guides, especially someone hired to show people around a place or an institution and offer information and explanation, or to lead them through dangerous terrain.
"The guide led us around the museum and explained the exhibits."
- 2 a structure or marking that serves to direct the motion or positioning of something wordnet
- 3 A document or book that offers information or instruction; guidebook.
- 4 a model or standard for making comparisons wordnet
- 5 A sign that guides people; guidepost.
Show 11 more definitions
- 6 something that offers basic information or instruction wordnet
- 7 Any marking or object that catches the eye to provide quick reference.
- 8 someone who shows the way by leading or advising wordnet
- 9 Synonym of legend, a key to symbols, abbreviations, and terms on a map, chart, etc.
- 10 someone who can find paths through unexplored territory wordnet
- 11 A device that guides part of a machine, or guides motion or action.; A blade or channel for directing the flow of water to the buckets in a water wheel.
- 12 someone employed to conduct others wordnet
- 13 A device that guides part of a machine, or guides motion or action.; A grooved director for a probe or knife in surgery.
- 14 A device that guides part of a machine, or guides motion or action.; A strip or device to direct the compositor's eye to the line of copy being set. dated
- 15 A spirit believed to speak through a medium.
"The familiars of the magicians, on the other hand, were not in all cases evil, and often may have approximated the "guides" with whom present-day spiritualists are well acquainted."
- 16 A member of a group marching in formation who sets the pattern of movement or alignment for the rest.
Verb
- 1 To serve as a guide for someone or something; to lead or direct in a way; to conduct in a course or path.
"And that you'd guide me to your Soueraignes Court,"
- 2 pass over, across, or through wordnet
- 3 To steer or navigate, especially a ship or as a pilot.
- 4 direct the course; determine the direction of travelling wordnet
- 5 To exert control or influence over someone or something.
"A good man sheweth fauour and lendeth: he will guide his affaires with discretion."
Show 5 more definitions
- 6 take somebody somewhere wordnet
- 7 To supervise the education or training of someone.
- 8 use as a guide wordnet
- 9 To act as a guide. intransitive
- 10 be a guiding or motivating force or drive wordnet
Proper Noun
- 1 A village in Blackburn with Darwen borough, Lancashire, England (OS grid ref SD7025).
- 2 A county of Hainan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Qinghai, China.
"She said she had chosen to speak out because she wanted to explain to the public why she left Guide county in Qinghai, where she and her husband Xie Chengde ran a successful honey farm that once featured on state television. The authorities in Guide said they are now investigating the case following her accusations."
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
"He acted as a guide while I was staying in Kyoto."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "guide"?
Common synonyms include: abecedarian, academic mentor, accompany, act as helper, admonisher, advancer role.
How do you use "guide" in a sentence?
He acted as a guide while I was staying in Kyoto.
How do you pronounce "guide"?
Pronounced /ɡaɪd/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
c. 1325–75. From Middle English guide, from the Old French guide, from Old Occitan guida, from guidar, from Frankish *wītan (“to show the way, lead”), from Proto-Germanic *wītaną (“to see, know; go, depart”), from Proto-Indo-European *weyd- (“to see, know”). Cognate with Old English wītan (“to see, take heed to, watch after, guard, keep”). Related also to English wit.
Etymology 2
From Middle English guiden, from Old French guider, from Old Occitan guidar, from Frankish *wītan (“to show the way, lead”), from Proto-Germanic *wītaną (“to see, know; go, depart”), from Proto-Indo-European *weyd- (“to see, know”).
Etymology 3
From the Hanyu Pinyin romanization of the Mandarin 貴德 /贵德 (Guìdé).