What does "appropriate" mean?
To take to oneself; to claim or use, especially as by an exclusive right.
Appropriate
/əˈpɹəʊ.pɹi.eɪt/ adj, verb
adj, verb ·Very common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: To take to oneself; to claim or use, especially as by an exclusive right.
- Grammar: appropriate is listed as adj, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: earmark, suitable, a good fit, a propos.
- Useful contrasts: inappropriate, inopportune, unhappy.
- Usage evidence: Let no one appropriate a common benefit.
How to use "appropriate"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "appropriate" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "appropriate" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "appropriate" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "appropriate" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "appropriate" is acting as adj, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "earmark" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "appropriate", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Verb
- 1 To take to oneself; to claim or use, especially as by an exclusive right. transitive
"Let no man appropriate the use of a common benefit."
- 2 give or assign a resource to a particular person or cause wordnet
- 3 To set apart for, or assign to, a particular person or use, especially in exclusion of all others; with to or for. transitive
"A spot of ground is appropriated for a garden."
- 4 take possession of by force, as after an invasion wordnet
- 5 To annex (for example a benefice, to a spiritual corporation, as its property). British, transitive
"Some [benefices] were appropriated to secular ecclesiastical corporations"
Show 1 more definition
- 6 To make suitable to; to suit. archaic, transitive
"Under the towers were a number of gloomy subterraneous apartments with vaulted roofs, the use of which imagination was left to guess, and could only appropriate to punishment and horror."
Adjective
- 1 Suitable or fit; proper; felicitous.
"The headmaster wondered what an appropriate measure would be to make the pupil behave better."
- 2 Suitable to the social situation or to social respect or social discreetness; socially correct; socially discreet; well-mannered; proper.
"I don't think it was appropriate for the cashier to tell me out loud in front of all those people at the checkout that my hairpiece looked like it was falling out of place."
- 3 Set apart for a particular use or person; reserved. obsolete
- 4 Of an action or thing: morally good; positive.
"Rescuing animals is an appropriate thing to do."
- 5 Of an action or thing: pleasant.
Adjective
- 1 suitable for a particular person or place or condition etc wordnet
- 2 meant or adapted for an occasion or use wordnet
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"Let no one appropriate a common benefit."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "appropriate"?
Common synonyms include: earmark, suitable, a good fit, a propos, absorb, abstract.
How do you use "appropriate" in a sentence?
Let no one appropriate a common benefit.
How do you pronounce "appropriate"?
Pronounced /əˈpɹəʊ.pɹi.eɪt/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English appropriaten, from appropriat (“appropriated”) + -en, borrowed from Latin appropriātus, perfect passive participle of appropriō (“to make one's own”), from ad (“to”) + propriō (“to make one's own”), from proprius (“one's own, private”) + -ō (first conjugation verb-forming suffix).
Etymology 2
From Middle English appropriat (“appropriated”), see -ate (adjective-forming suffix) and Etymology 1 for more.