adjective

1. complete in all respects; without defect or omission; sound; flawless
2. in a condition of complete excellence, as in skill or quantity; faultless; most excellent; sometimes used comparatively “to create a more perfect union”
3. completely correct or accurate; exact; precise a perfect copy
4. without reserve or qualification; pure; utter; sheer; absolute a perfect fool, perfect stranger
5. designating a binding of books in which pages are glued to cloth or paper at the spine rather than having the signatures sewn together
6. Bot. monoclinous
7. Gram. expressing or showing a state or action completed at the time of speaking or at the time indicated: verbs have three perfect tenses: simple (or present) perfect, past perfect (or pluperfect), and future perfect
8. Music designating an interval of a unison, fourth, fifth, or octave

Etymology: ME perfit < OFr parfit < L perfectus, pp. of perficere, to finish < per-, through (see per-) + facere, to make, do: mod. sp. is Latinized

transitive verb

1. to bring to completion
2. to make perfect or more nearly perfect according to a given standard, as by training

noun

1. the perfect tense
2. a verb form in this tense