classifier

clas·si·fi·er
C3L1A1S1S1I1F4I1E1R1
US/ˈklæsɪfaɪɚ/UK/ˈklæsɪfaɪə/

noun

Someone who classifies.

Less commonScrabble 15
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Meanings

nounclassifier (plural classifiers)

plural classifiers

  1. Someone who classifies.

    He was a model of anal defensiveness: fastidious in his dress and appearance, a collector and putter of things in order, a classifier and labeler.

    1995, Leonard Shengold, Delusions of Everyday Life, page 39
  2. human sciencesA word or morpheme used in some languages (such as CJKV languages and sign languages), in certain contexts (such as counting), to indicate the semantic class to which something belongs.
  3. A machine that separates particles or objects of different size or density.
  4. machine learningcomputerA program or algorithm that classifies.
  5. object-oriented programmingA metaclass used to group other entities having common features.

    A classifier can have several types of extra information attached to it via a UML mechanism called adornments.

    2005, Dan Pilone, Neil Pitman, UML 2.0 in a Nutshell: A Desktop Quick Reference, page 9
    2 more examples

    The owner scope of a feature specifies whether the feature appears in each instance of the classifier or whether there is just a single instance of the feature for all instances of the classifier.

    2008, S.S.Jadhav B.S.Ainapure, Object Oriented Modeling & Design, page 3-40

    The figure also shows that instances can be associated with a classifier Behavior, which represents the behavior that active objects start executing when created.

    2017, Katalin Popovici, Pieter J. Mosterman, Real-Time Simulation Technologies, page 142

Synonyms & antonyms

Also see
classificator

Origin

From classify + -er.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Arabic مُصَنِّف, مُصَنِّفَة
  • مُصَنِّف (muṣannif)someone who classifies
  • مُصَنِّفَة (muṣannifa)someone who classifies
  • مُصَنِّفُون (muṣannifūn)someone who classifies
  • مُصَنِّفِين (muṣannifīn)someone who classifies
  • مُصَنِّفَيْن (muṣannifayn)someone who classifies
  • مُصَنِّفَان (muṣannifān)someone who classifies
  • مُصَنِّفَات (muṣannifāt)someone who classifies
  • مُصَنِّفَتَان (muṣannifatān)someone who classifies
  • مُصَنِّفَتَيْن (muṣannifatayn)someone who classifies
  • مِصْنَاف (miṣnāf)someone who classifies
  • مِصْنَافَيْن (miṣnāfayn)someone who classifies
  • مِصْنَافَان (miṣnāfān)someone who classifies
Catalan classificador, classificadora
  • classificadorsomeone who classifies
  • classificadorasomeone who classifies
Chinese Mandarin 量詞 /量词
  • 量詞 /量词 (liàngcí)(linguistics) word or morpheme used to indicate a semantic class
Czech klasifikátor
  • klasifikátorsomeone who classifies
French classificateur, classifieur
  • classificateursomeone who classifies
  • classifieurcomputing: a program or algorithm that classifies
  • classificateur(linguistics) word or morpheme used to indicate a semantic class
  • mot de mesure(linguistics) word or morpheme used to indicate a semantic class
  • classifieurOOP: class which classifies other classes by features
German Zählwort, Zählklassenwort
  • Zählwort(linguistics) word or morpheme used to indicate a semantic class
  • Zählklassenwort(linguistics) word or morpheme used to indicate a semantic class
  • Zähleinheitswort(linguistics) word or morpheme used to indicate a semantic class
  • Numeralklassifikator(linguistics) word or morpheme used to indicate a semantic class
  • Zahlklassifikator(linguistics) word or morpheme used to indicate a semantic class
  • Klassifikator(linguistics) word or morpheme used to indicate a semantic class
Hungarian számlálószó
  • számlálószó(linguistics) word or morpheme used to indicate a semantic class
Japanese 助数詞, 類別詞
  • 助数詞 (josūshi)(linguistics) word or morpheme used to indicate a semantic class
  • 類別詞 (ruibetsushi)(linguistics) word or morpheme used to indicate a semantic class
  • 量詞 (ryōshi)(linguistics) word or morpheme used to indicate a semantic class
Korean 수분류사, 양수사
  • 수분류사 (subullyusa)(linguistics) word or morpheme used to indicate a semantic class
  • 양수사 (yangsusa)(linguistics) word or morpheme used to indicate a semantic class
Malay penjodoh bilangan
  • penjodoh bilangan(linguistics) word or morpheme used to indicate a semantic class
Māori kaiwhakarōpū
  • kaiwhakarōpūsomeone who classifies
Portuguese classificador, classificador
  • classificadorsomeone who classifies
  • classificador(linguistics) word or morpheme used to indicate a semantic class
Russian классифика́тор, счётное сло́во
  • классифика́тор (klassifikátor)(linguistics) word or morpheme used to indicate a semantic class
  • счётное сло́во (sčótnoje slóvo)(linguistics) word or morpheme used to indicate a semantic class
Swedish klassificerare, klassmärke
  • klassificeraresomeone who classifies
  • klassmärke(linguistics) word or morpheme used to indicate a semantic class
Thai ลักษณนาม
  • ลักษณนาม (lák-sà-nà-naam)(linguistics) word or morpheme used to indicate a semantic class
Vietnamese loại từ, danh từ loại thể
  • loại từ(linguistics) word or morpheme used to indicate a semantic class
  • danh từ loại thể(linguistics) word or morpheme used to indicate a semantic class
  • danh từ chỉ đơn vị tự nhiên(linguistics) word or morpheme used to indicate a semantic class
Cite this entry
APA

classifier. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/classifier

MLA

“classifier.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/classifier. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “classifier,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/classifier.

Source: classifier on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.