What does "phase" mean?
A distinguishable part of a sequence or cycle occurring over time.
Phase
/feɪz/ name, noun, verb, slang
name, noun, verb, slang ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A distinguishable part of a sequence or cycle occurring over time.
- Grammar: phase is listed as name, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: form, stage, academic term, age of change.
- Useful contrasts: continue, eliminate, entire process.
- Usage evidence: We are entering a new phase in the war.
How to use "phase"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "phase" 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 "phase" 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 "phase" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "phase" 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 "phase" is acting as name, noun, verb, slang 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 "form" 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 "phase", 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 A distinguishable part of a sequence or cycle occurring over time.
- 2 (astronomy) the particular appearance of a body's state of illumination (especially one of the recurring shapes of the part of Earth's moon that is illuminated by the sun) wordnet
- 3 That which is exhibited to the eye; the appearance which anything manifests, especially any one among different and varying appearances of the same object.
- 4 (physical chemistry) a distinct state of matter in a system; matter that is identical in chemical composition and physical state and separated from other material by the phase boundary wordnet
- 5 Any appearance or aspect of an object of mental apprehension or view.
"The problem has many phases."
Show 11 more definitions
- 6 a particular point in the time of a cycle; measured from some arbitrary zero and expressed as an angle wordnet
- 7 A particular appearance or state in a regularly recurring cycle of changes with respect to quantity of illumination or form, or the absence, of a body's illuminated disk. Illustrated in Wikipedia's article Lunar phase.
"the phases of the moon"
- 8 any distinct time period in a sequence of events wordnet
- 9 Any one point or portion in a recurring series of changes, as in the changes of motion of one of the particles constituting a wave or vibration; one portion of a series of such changes, in distinction from a contrasted portion, as the portion on one side of a position of equilibrium, in contrast with that on the opposite side.
- 10 A component in a material system that is distinguished by chemical composition and/or physical state (solid, liquid or gas) and/or crystal structure. It is delineated from an adjoining phase by an abrupt change in one or more of those conditions.
- 11 In certain organisms, one of two or more colour variations characteristic of the species, but independent of the ordinary seasonal and sexual differences, and often also of age.
- 12 The period of play between consecutive breakdowns.
"When Romania did manage to string together some phases midway through the first half, England's discipline held firm, although on the whole it was a less focused display from the Six Nations champions in the second half."
- 13 A haplotype.
- 14 The counterclockwise angle from the positive half of the real number line to the vector pointing to a complex number on an Argand diagram of the complex plane, which has the positive real line pointing right and the positive imaginary number line pointing up.
- 15 A distortion caused by a difference in the speed of propagation for different frequencies
- 16 In a polyphase electrical power system, one of the power-carrying conductors, or the alternating current carried by it.
Verb
- 1 To begin—if construed with "in"—or to discontinue—if construed with out—(doing) something over a period of time (i.e. in phases).
"The use of the obsolete machines was gradually phased out as the new models were phased in."
- 2 Alternative spelling of faze alt-of, alternative, proscribed
- 3 adjust so as to be in a synchronized condition wordnet
- 4 To determine haplotypes in (data) when genotypes are known. informal, transitive
- 5 arrange in phases or stages wordnet
Show 2 more definitions
- 6 To pass into or through a solid object.
"Anyone who has lost their way in cyberspace—realizing they have just phased into what they had previously categorized as 'solid' matter—will understand this example."
- 7 To use a phaser.
Proper Noun
- 1 Passover obsolete
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
"We are entering a new phase in the war."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "phase"?
Common synonyms include: form, stage, academic term, age of change, angle, appearance.
How do you use "phase" in a sentence?
We are entering a new phase in the war.
How do you pronounce "phase"?
Pronounced /feɪz/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From New Latin phasis, from Ancient Greek φάσις (phásis, “an appearance”), from φαίνω (phaínō, “to cause to appear”); compare phantasm and see face.
Etymology 2
From Latin phase (“passover”), Phasa, from Hebrew פָּסַח (pésach).