clas ‧ si ‧ fy /ˈklæsəfaɪ, ˈklæsɪfaɪ/ BrE AmE verb ( past tense and past participle classified , present participle classifying , third person singular classifies ) [transitive]
1 . to decide what group something belongs to ⇨ classification
classify something as/under something
In law, beer is classified as a food product.
We’d classify Drabble’s novels under ‘Romance’.
Families are classified according to the father’s occupation.
2 . to regard people or things as belonging to a particular group because they have similar qualities ⇨ classification :
As a musician, Cage is hard to classify.
—classifiable adjective
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THESAURUS
■ to put in order
▪ arrange to put things in a particular order or position:
I like the way you’ve arranged the room.
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a group of numbers arranged in any order
▪ organize to arrange things in order according to a system, so that they are more effective or easier to use:
The book is organized into three sections.
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How is the equipment organized?
▪ order to arrange a group of things so that one comes after the other in a particular order:
The books are ordered according to title.
▪ classify to arrange things in groups, and give each group a title:
The towns were classified according to population size.
▪ set out to arrange a group of things on the floor, on a table, on a shelf etc, ready to be used:
If we set out the chairs now, they’ll be ready for tonight’s meeting.
▪ be laid out to be arranged according to a particular plan – used especially about cities, buildings, and pages:
Kyoto is laid out according to a grid system.