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guideline

noun · verb

Simple meaning

A rule or principle that provides guidance to appropriate behavior.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

gydlyn

Say the bold part a little louder.

US device voice
IPA pronunciation (US)

ˈɡaɪdlaɪn

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

noun

  1. A rule or principle that provides guidance to appropriate behavior

  2. A non-specific rule or principle that provides direction to action or behaviour.

  3. A detailed plan or explanation to guide you in setting standards or determining a course of action

  4. A light line that is used in lettering to help align the letters

verb

  1. To provide guidelines for.

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

Aura for this meaning

This meaning: A rule or principle that provides guidance to appropriate behavior

Used this way, guideline is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It turns up most in ethics or values contexts.

Emotional tone
Neutral
Formality
Neutral
Intensity
Not strongly marked
How common
Moderately common
Connotation
Matter-of-fact
Usage feel
Neutral and straightforward

Where it naturally appears

  • Ethics/values

Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.

More ways to use guideline

  • “Follow the safety guideline to ensure everyone stays protected.”

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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.