Enlist

//ɛnˈlɪst// noun, verb

noun, verb ·Common ·High school level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    One who is enlisted, usually in a military service.

    "[…] 19.17% are enlisted officers (including cadets and midshipmen with BA degrees and associate degrees, officers Designated Military Occupational Specialty, the enlists converting into conscripts], officers from ROTCs) ; 0.31% are conscripted […]"

Verb
  1. 1
    To enter on a list; to enroll; to register. transitive
  2. 2
    join the military wordnet
  3. 3
    To voluntarily join a cause or organization, especially military service. intransitive

    "The army wants potential soldiers to enlist."

  4. 4
    engage somebody to enter the army wordnet
  5. 5
    To recruit the aid or membership of others. transitive

    "We enlisted fifty new members."

Show 2 more definitions
  1. 6
    hire for work or assistance wordnet
  2. 7
    To secure; to obtain. transitive

    "They enlisted the government's support."

Synonyms

All synonyms
affiliateengagejoinrecruitfangaccede

Example

More examples

"Tom decided to enlist in the army."

Etymology

From en- + list.

More for "enlist"

SynonymsSentencesPronunciationTranslate

Next best steps

Find stronger synonymsSee usage examplesCheck pronunciationBrowse writing guides

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.