Meaning & use
mark
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Meanings
nouncountable
A visible spot, line or stain on a surface, often left by something touching it.
Grammar: Countable: a mark on the wall.
Patterns
- a mark on something
- leave a mark
The wet glass left a ring-shaped mark on the table.
There was a dark mark on his shirt.
Scratches covered the marks on the old door.
nouncountable
A written or printed sign used for a purpose, such as in punctuation or to show a place.
Grammar: Often part of a compound: question mark, exclamation mark.
Patterns
- a question mark
- a mark of respect
Put a question mark at the end of the sentence.
The explorer left a mark on the tree to show the trail.
The label bore the maker's mark.
nouncountableBritish
A score or grade given for schoolwork or performance.
Grammar: Mainly British; American English often prefers grade.
Patterns
- get a good mark
- full marks
She got full marks in the spelling test.
His marks improved after he started studying daily.
The teacher gave me a low mark for neatness.
verbtransitive
To make a spot, line or sign on something so it can be seen or recognized.
Grammar: Takes an object: mark the box.
Patterns
- mark something with something
- mark something as something
Please mark your name on each box.
He marked the route on the map with a red pen.
Hikers marked the trail with small flags.
verbtransitiveBritish
To check schoolwork and give it a score or corrections.
Grammar: British; American English uses grade.
Patterns
- mark an exam
- mark papers
The teacher spent the weekend marking essays.
She marked the quiz in red pen.
He marks assignments every Friday.
verbtransitive
To celebrate, show or signal the importance of an event or point in time.
Grammar: Takes an object: mark an occasion.
Patterns
- mark an occasion
- mark the end of something
Fireworks marked the end of the festival.
The town held a parade to mark the anniversary.
This decision marks a turning point for the company.
Word forms
| plural | marks |
|---|---|
| third person singular | marks |
| past tense | marked |
| past participle | marked |
| -ing form | marking |
Common combinations
- leave a mark
- The hot pan left a mark on the counter.
- question mark
- Don't forget the question mark at the end.
- mark the occasion
- We lit candles to mark the occasion.
- full marks
- She earned full marks on the project.
- make your mark
- He moved to the city hoping to make his mark.
- mark my words
- Mark my words, it will rain before noon.
Synonyms and how they differ
- stain
- Stain means a mark that is hard to remove and is usually dirty, while mark can be any visible sign, clean or not.
- grade
- Grade is the usual American word for a school score, whereas mark is the British choice.
- label
- Label means a tag or sign attached to something to identify it, while mark can be made directly on the surface.
- signal
- Signal as a verb means to show a message or sign for others to notice, whereas mark more often means to make something noticeable on a surface.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: mark or mask? mark or market?
mark vs mask
Mask is a covering for the face, while mark is a sign or stain on a surface.
mark vs market
Market is a place to buy and sell, which looks and sounds similar to mark but has a different meaning.
Practice
The teacher spent the whole weekend ____ the students' essays.
Choose one answer.
To mark an essay means to check it and give a score. The other options are similar-sounding words but do not mean grading schoolwork.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “mark”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.