describe

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

1. v. To give an account of in speech or writing.
2. v. To convey an idea or impression of; characterize: She described her childhood as a time of wonder and discovery.
3. v. To represent pictorially; depict: Goya's etchings describe the horrors of war in grotesque detail.
4. v. To trace the form or outline of: describe a circle with a compass.

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

1. To delineate or mark the form or figure of; trace out; outline: as, to describe a circle with the compasses.
2. To form or trace by motion: as, a star describes an ellipse in the heavens.
3. To write down; inscribe.
4. To represent orally or by writing; portray in words; give an account of: as, to describe a person or a scene; to describe a battle.
5. To distribute into classes or divisions; divide for representation.
6. Synonyms Describe, Narrate, portray, explain. Describe applies primarily to what exists—space, and by extension to what occurs—time, but narrate applies only to the latter: as, to describe a view, a race, or a siege; to narrate an experience or a history. Describe implies often the vividness of personal observation; narrate is more applicable to long series of events. A single narrative may contain many descriptions of separate events.
7. To make descriptions; use the power of describing.

Wiktionary

1. v. transitive To represent in words.
2. v. transitive (mathematics) To give rise to a geometrical structure.
3. v. transitive (biology) To scientifically reveal a new species by technically explaining its characteristics and particularly how it differs from other species.

GNU Webster's 1913

1. v. To represent by drawing; to draw a plan of; to delineate; to trace or mark out
2. v. To represent by words written or spoken; to give an account of; to make known to others by words or signs.
3. v. obsolete To distribute into parts, groups, or classes; to mark off; to class.
4. v. To use the faculty of describing; to give a description.

WordNet 3.0

1. v. make a mark or lines on a surface
2. v. to give an account or representation of in words
3. v. give a description of
4. v. identify as in botany or biology, for example