/ ˈpɜːpəs; NAmE ˈpɜːrpəs/ noun
1.
[ C ] the intention, aim or function of sth; the thing that sth is supposed to achieve :
Our campaign's main purpose is to raise money.
The purpose of the book is to provide a complete guide to the university.
A meeting was called for the purpose of appointing a new treasurer.
The experiments serve no useful purpose (= are not useful) .
The building is used for religious purposes.
2.
purposes [ pl. ] what is needed in a particular situation :
These gifts count as income for tax purposes.
For the purposes of this study, the three groups have been combined.
3.
[ C , U ] meaning that is important and valuable to you :
Volunteer work gives her life (a sense of) purpose .
4.
[ U ] the ability to plan sth and work successfully to achieve it
SYN determination :
He has enormous confidence and strength of purpose .
—see also cross purposes
•
IDIOMS
- on purpose
- to little / no purpose
—more at intent noun , practical adjective
••
SYNONYMS
purpose
aim ♦ intention ♦ plan ♦ point ♦ idea
These are all words for talking about what sb/sth intends to do or achieve.
purpose
what sth is supposed to achieve; what sb is trying to achieve:
Our campaign's main purpose is to raise money.
aim
what sb is trying to achieve; what sth is supposed to achieve:
She went to London with the aim of finding a job.
•
Our main aim is to increase sales in Europe.
purpose or aim?
Your purpose for doing something is your reason for doing it; your aim is what you want to achieve. Aim can suggest that you are only trying to achieve sth; purpose gives a stronger sense of achievement being certain. Aim can be sb's aim or the aim of sth . Purpose is more usually the purpose of sth : you can talk about sb's purpose but that is more formal.
intention
what you intend to do:
I have no intention of going to the wedding.
•
She's full of good intentions but they rarely work out.
plan
what you intend to do or achieve:
There are no plans to build new offices.
intention or plan?
Your intentions are what you want to do, especially in the near future; your plans are what you have decided or arranged to do, often, but not always, in the longer term.
point
( rather informal ) the purpose or aim of sth:
What's the point of all this violence?
•
The point of the lesson is to compare the two countries.
idea
( rather informal ) the purpose of sth; sb's aim:
The whole idea of going was so that we could meet her new boyfriend.
•
What's the idea behind this?
point or idea?
Point is a more negative word than idea. If you say What's the point...? you are suggesting that there is no point; if you say What's the idea...? you are genuinely asking a question. Point , but not idea , is used to talk about things you feel annoyed or unhappy about: There's no idea in... • I don't see the idea of... .
PATTERNS AND COLLOCATIONS :
with the purpose / aim / intention / idea of doing sth
sb's intention / plan to do sth
a / an ambitious / realistic aim / plan
to have a(n) purpose / aim / intention / plan / point
to achieve / fulfil a(n) purpose / aim
••
WORD ORIGIN
Middle English : from Old French porpos , from the verb porposer , variant of proposer , from Latin proponere set forth (from pro- forward + ponere put).