article

[ahr-ti-kuhl]

noun

1. a written composition in prose, usually nonfiction, on a specific topic, forming an independent part of a book or other publication, as a newspaper or magazine.

2. an individual object, member, or portion of a class; an item or particular: articles of clothing.

   an article of food;

   articles of clothing.

3. something of indefinite character or description.

   What is that article?

4. an item for sale; commodity.

5. Grammar.,  any member of a small class of words, or, as in Swedish or Romanian, affixes, found in certain languages, as English, French, and Arabic, that are linked to nouns and that typically have a grammatical function identifying the noun as a noun rather than describing it. In English the definite article is the, the indefinite article is a or an, and their force is generally to impart specificity to the noun or to single out the referent from the class named by the noun.

6. a clause, item, point, or particular in a contract, treaty, or other formal agreement; a condition or stipulation in a contract or bargain.

   The lawyers disagreed on the article covering plagiarism suits.

7. a separate clause or provision of a statute.

8. Slang.,  a person.

   Trust me, this guy's not just any article, he's Mr. Right.

9. Archaic.,  a subject or matter of interest, thought, business, etc.

10. Obsolete.,  a specific or critical point of time; juncture or moment.

    the article of death.

verb (used with object)

articled, articling 

1. to set forth in articles; charge or accuse specifically.

   They articled his alleged crimes.

2. to bind by articles of covenant or stipulation.

   to article an apprentice.

article

/ ˈɑːtɪkəl /

noun

1. one of a class of objects; item

   an article of clothing

2. an unspecified or previously named thing, esp a small object

   he put the article on the table

3. a distinct part of a subject or action

4. a written composition on a subject, often being one of several found in a magazine, newspaper, etc

5. grammar a kind of determiner, occurring in many languages including English, that lacks independent meaning but may serve to indicate the specificity of reference of the noun phrase with which it occurs See also definite article indefinite article

6. a clause or section in a written document such as a treaty, contract, statute, etc

7. formerly, undergoing training, according to the terms of a written contract, in the legal profession

8. (often capital) Christianity See article of faith Thirty-nine Articles

9. archaic,  a topic or subject

verb

1. archaic,  to accuse

Other Word Forms

• subarticle noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of article¹

First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English, from Anglo-French, Medieval Latin articulus “article of faith,” Latin: “joint, limb, member, clause, grammatical article,” equivalent to arti- (combining form of artus “joint”; akin to arthro-, arm ² ) + -culus diminutive ( -cule ¹ )

Word History and Origins

Origin of article¹

C13: from Old French, from Latin articulus small joint, from artus joint

Example Sentences

This article was updated to include details from Kennedy’s Sept. 4, 2025, hearing.

From Salon

This article contains spoilers from the first season of “The Paper.”

From Los Angeles Times

“I think that everyone is entitled to feel how they feel,” Marsh said of that portion of the article.

From Los Angeles Times

This article contains spoilers for the Season 2 finale of “Wednesday.”

From Los Angeles Times

"If this article being published makes a difference or changes a potential outcome to at least one person's life, then I know she would approve."

From BBC

Related Words

• column 
• commentary 
• editorial 
• essay 
• feature 
• item 
• paper 
• piece 
• story