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purpose

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noun British English pronunciation: purpose /ˈpɜː(r)pəs/ 
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singularpurpose
pluralpurposes
Other entries for this word
  1. 1
    [countable] the aim that someone wants to achieve, or that something is intended to achieve

    I use my boat mainly for leisure purposes.

    purpose of:

    The purpose of this dictionary is to help students of English.

    the purpose of doing something:

    The President's trip will have the purpose of negotiating a peace deal.

    for the purpose of doing something:

    He went there for the purpose of making business contacts.

    someone's purpose in doing something:

    Her sole purpose in being here was to kill some time.

    suit someone's purpose:

    You must decide which method suits your purpose best.

    serve a purpose (=achieve an aim):

    Another meeting would serve absolutely no purpose.

    defeat the purpose of something (=make it impossible to achieve the aim that you want to achieve):

    Exercising for too long defeats the purpose of doing exercise in the first place.

    Thesaurus entry for this meaning of purpose
  2. 2
    [uncountable] an aim or meaning in your life because there is something that you want to achieve

    Now his life lacks purpose.

    a sense of purpose:

    The course gave her a new sense of purpose.

    Thesaurus entry for this meaning of purpose

phrases

This is the British English definition of purpose. View American English definition of purpose.

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View the pronunciation for purpose.

 

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