What does "state" mean?
A condition; a set of circumstances applying at any given time.
State
/steɪt/ adj, name, noun, verb, slang
adj, name, noun, verb, slang ·Top 500 ·Elementary level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A condition; a set of circumstances applying at any given time.
- Grammar: state is listed as adj, name, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: condition, province, situation, status.
- Useful contrasts: federal agencies, federal court, federal courts.
- Usage evidence: You must state the fact as it is.
How to use "state"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "state" 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 "state" 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 "state" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "state" 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 "state" is acting as adj, 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 "condition" 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 "state", 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 condition; a set of circumstances applying at any given time.
"a state of being"
- 2 A current governing polity, country, city-state, or community.
- 3 the way something is with respect to its main attributes wordnet
- 4 A condition; a set of circumstances applying at any given time.; A complete description of a system, consisting of parameters that determine all properties of the system.
"States in which the energy has definite values are called stationary states of a system; they are described by wave functions Ψₙ which are the eigenfunctions of the Hamiltonian operator, i.e. which satisfy the equation ĤΨₙ = EₙΨₙ, where Eₙ are the eigenvalues of the energy."
- 5 The current governing polity, country, city-state, or community under which the speaker lives. often, with-definite-article
Show 25 more definitions
- 6 the federal department in the United States that sets and maintains foreign policies wordnet
- 7 A condition; a set of circumstances applying at any given time.; A mess; disorder; a bad condition or set of circumstances. colloquial, singular
"absolute state"
- 8 a politically organized body of people under a single government wordnet
- 9 A condition; a set of circumstances applying at any given time.; The stable condition of a processor during a particular clock cycle.
"In the fetch state, the address of the next instruction is placed on the address bus."
- 10 the group of people comprising the government of a sovereign state wordnet
- 11 A condition; a set of circumstances applying at any given time.; The set of all parameters relevant to a computation.
"The state here includes a set containing all names seen so far."
- 12 the territory occupied by a nation wordnet
- 13 A condition; a set of circumstances applying at any given time.; The values of all parameters at some point in a computation.
"A debugger can show the state of a program at any breakpoint."
- 14 the territory occupied by one of the constituent administrative districts of a nation wordnet
- 15 A condition; a set of circumstances applying at any given time.; The physical property of matter as solid, liquid, gas or plasma.
- 16 a state of depression or agitation wordnet
- 17 A condition; a set of circumstances applying at any given time.; Highest and stationary condition, as that of maturity between growth and decline, or as that of crisis between the increase and the abating of a disease; height; acme. obsolete
- 18 (chemistry) the three traditional states of matter are solids (fixed shape and volume) and liquids (fixed volume and shaped by the container) and gases (filling the container) wordnet
- 19 High social standing or circumstance.; Pomp, ceremony, or dignity.
"in state"
- 20 High social standing or circumstance.; Rank; condition; quality.
"And leſned by that ſmall, God I beſeech him, / Thy honor, ſtate, and ſeate, is due to me."
- 21 High social standing or circumstance.; Condition of prosperity or grandeur; wealthy or prosperous circumstances; social importance.
"Firſt, in princely behaviour and geſture, teaching him how he ſhould keep of a kind of ſtate, and yet, with a modeſt ſenſe of his misfortunes."
- 22 High social standing or circumstance.; A chair with a canopy above it, often standing on a dais; a seat of dignity; also, the canopy itself.
"[…]and from the dore / Of that Plutonia Hall, inviſible / Aſcended his high Throne, which under ſtate / Of richeſt texture ſpred, at th’ upper end / Was plac’t in regal luſtre."
- 23 High social standing or circumstance.; A great person, a dignitary; a lord or prince. obsolete
"We in the name of other Perſean ſtates, And commons of this mightie Monarchy, Preſent thee with the Emperiall Diadem."
- 24 High social standing or circumstance.; Estate, possession. obsolete
"Their parties great, meanes good, the ſeaſon fit, / Their practice cloſe, their faith ſuſpected not, / Their ſtates far off, and they of wary wit : / Who, with large promiſes, ſo wooe the Scot / To aide their Cauſe, as he conſents to it ; / And glad was to diſturne that furious ſtreame / Of warre, on vs, that elſe had ſwallowed them."
- 25 A polity or community.; A sovereign country or city-state and its government, often used as synonym of the latter.
"Never do anything against conscience even if the state demands it."
- 26 A polity or community.; A political division of a federation retaining a notable degree of autonomy, as in the United States, Mexico, Nigeria, or India.
"His alibi is that he was out of state the night of the murder."
- 27 A polity or community.; A form of government other than a monarchy. obsolete
"Well monarchies may own religion’s name, / But ſtates are atheiſts in their very frame."
- 28 A polity or community.; A society larger than a tribe. A society large enough to form a state in the sense of a government.
- 29 An element of the range of the random variables that define a random process.
- 30 The lexical aspect (aktionsart) of verbs or predicates that do not change over time.
"[…]distinctions among states of affairs are reflected to a striking degree in distinctions among Aktionsart types. That is, situations are expressed by state verbs or predicates, events by achievement verbs or predicates, and actions by activity verbs or predicates."
Verb
- 1 To declare to be a fact. transitive
"He stated that he was willing to help."
- 2 put before wordnet
- 3 To make known. transitive
"State your intentions."
- 4 express in words wordnet
- 5 indicate through a symbol, formula, etc. wordnet
Adjective
- 1 Stately. obsolete
"The ſhepheardes ſwayne you cannot well ken, / But it be by his pride, from other men: / They looken bigge as Bulles, that bene bate, / And bearen the cragge ſo ſtiffe and ſo ſtate, / As Cocke on his dunghill, crowing cranck."
Proper Noun
- 1 State University, as the shortened form of a public university name.
"State begins fouling and UCLA misses a couple of front-end free throws on one-and-ones."
Antonyms
federal agenciesfederal courtfederal courtsfederal executive
Example
"You must state the fact as it is."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "state"?
Common synonyms include: condition, province, situation, status, adjusting, administrative act.
How do you use "state" in a sentence?
You must state the fact as it is.
How do you pronounce "state"?
Pronounced /steɪt/.
Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *steh₂- Proto-Italic *status Latin statuslbor. Old French estatbor. Middle English stat English state From Middle English stat (as a noun); adopted c. 1200 from both Old French estat and Latin stātus (“manner of standing, attitude, position, carriage, manner, dress, apparel; and other senses”), from stāre (“to stand”). Doublet of estate and status. The sense of "polity" develops in the 14th century. Compare French être, Greek στέω (stéo), Italian stare, Portuguese estar, Romanian sta, and Spanish estar. The verb is first attested around the beginning of the 16th century. Related to English stand.