for/of

Question

hi guys...do is say:  "the definition OF.." or "the definition FOR..."for example: The defintion of/for &lt;tree&gt; is: a type of plant.thanksJohn

Maple · Accepted Answer

John182hi guys...

do is say: "the definition OF.." or "the definition FOR..."

for example: The defintion of/for <tree> is: a type of plant.

thanks
John

My two cents:

"The definition of sth" is the standard express to say "the definition belonging to sth".

But if we want to stress the process of making the definition, "for" should be the word chosen. see: build out the definition for; here's a definition for

Marius Hancu · Answer

Both are possible. See the examples here:
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definition

1 : an act of determining or settling: as a Roman Catholicism : an official ecclesiastical statement concerning a matter of faith or of morals as pertaining to faith b : a prescribed or official standard for a commercial product <the definition for oatmeal prescribes that the amount of nitrogen contained shall not be less than 2.24 percent -- Scientific Monthly> c : the fixing or determination of social character <personal status is a matter of social definition> <society has changed its definition of women's political rights>

5 a : the action or the power of making http://unabridged.merriam-webster.com/cgi-bin/unabridged?book=Third&va=definite and clear or of bringing into sharp relief <an emotion beyond definition> <the definition of a telescope> b : distinctness of outline or detail (as in a photograph) : clarity especially of musical sound in reproduction c : sharp demarcation of outlines or limits <a problem of clear definition>

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for/of

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