COMPRISE

constitute, represent, make up, comprise, be

(verb) form or compose; “This money is my only income”; “The stone wall was the backdrop for the performance”; “These constitute my entire belonging”; “The children made up the chorus”; “This sum represents my entire income for a year”; “These few men comprise his entire army”

incorporate, contain, comprise

(verb) include or contain; have as a component; “A totally new idea is comprised in this paper”; “The record contains many old songs from the 1930’s”

consist, comprise

(verb) be composed of; “The land he conquered comprised several provinces”; “What does this dish consist of?”

Source: WordNet® 3.1

Etymology

Verb

comprise (third-person singular simple present comprises, present participle comprising, simple past and past participle comprised)

To be made up of; to consist of (especially a comprehensive list of parts). [from earlier 15^thc.]

To contain or embrace. [from earlier 15^thc.]

(sometimes, proscribed, usually in the passive) To compose, to constitute. See usage note below.

(patent law) To include, contain, or be made up of, defining the minimum elements, whether essential or inessential, to define an invention. ("Open-ended", doesn't limit to the items listed; cf. compose, which is "closed" and limits to the items listed.)

Usage notes

• Traditionally, a team comprised its members, whereas the members composed the team. (The Associated Press Stylebook advises journalists to maintain this distinction.) The sense "compose, constitute"—as in "the members comprise the team"—is sometimes considered incorrect. According to Webster's Dictionary, it dates back to the late 18th century, when it was usually found in technical writing, but Webster's indicates that it is becoming increasingly common in nontechnical literature as well. The American Heritage Dictionary and Random House Dictionary also state that it is an increasingly frequent and accepted usage.

• In the passive voice, the use of "of" with comprise (i.e. "is/are comprised of") may be regarded as tautological because the same meaning can be expressed in the active ("comprises") without an "of", or with "composed of", which is both synonymous and non-tautological (since "compose" in this sense always requires an "of").

• In most varieties of English, the use of "of" with the verb in the active (rather than passive) voice is consistently treated as incorrect, hence *"the UK comprises of four countries" and *"four countries comprise of the UK" are proscribed. Some Asian dialects are exceptions, including Malaysian English (quite commonly), and to varying degrees Indian, Singaporean, and others.

• In patent law, the term "comprising" is "open ended" in most jurisdictions, but may be presumed to be a "closed" listing in other jurisdictions.

Synonyms

• (to compose): form, make up; see also compose

Anagrams

• perosmic

Source: Wiktionary

Com*prise", v. t. [imp. & p. p. Comprised; p. pr. & vb. n. Comprising.] Etym: [From F. compris, comprise, p. p. of comprendre, L. comprehendere. See Comprehend.]

Definition: To comprehend; to include. Comprise much matter in few words. Hocker. Friendship does two souls in one comprise. Roscommon.

Syn.

– To embrace; include; comprehend; contain; encircle; inclose; involve; imply.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition