Use

/juːs/ noun, verb

noun, verb ·Very common ·Middle school level

Meaning at a glance

  • Primary sense: The act of using.
  • Grammar: use is listed as noun, verb.
  • Nearest alternatives: employment, function, purpose, utilization.
  • Useful contrasts: benches, conserve, desuetude.
  • Usage evidence: It's no use pretending to make me believe that I believe things you don't believe!

How to use "use"

  1. Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
  2. Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "use" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
  3. 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 "use" 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 "use" as the right word for your sentence.

If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "use" 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 "use" is acting as noun, 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 "employment" 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 "use", 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

Noun
  1. 1
    The act of using. countable, uncountable

    "The use of torture has been condemned by the United Nations."

  2. 2
    exerting shrewd or devious influence especially for one's own advantage wordnet
  3. 3
    The act of consuming alcohol or narcotics. uncountable

    "Heavy alcohol use (2.5 drinks per day or more) at any age is unhealthy and should be avoided."

  4. 4
    (psychology) an automatic pattern of behavior in reaction to a specific situation; may be inherited or acquired through frequent repetition wordnet
  5. 5
    Usefulness, benefit. uncountable

    "What's the use of a law that nobody follows?"

Show 12 more definitions
  1. 6
    the act of using wordnet
  2. 7
    A function; a purpose for which something may be employed. countable, uncountable

    "This tool has many uses."

  3. 8
    what something is used for wordnet
  4. 9
    Occasion or need to employ; necessity. countable, uncountable

    "I have no further use for these textbooks."

  5. 10
    a particular service wordnet
  6. 11
    Interest for lent money; premium paid for the use of something; usury. countable, obsolete, rare, uncountable

    "DON PEDRO. Come, lady, come; you have lost the heart of Signior Benedick. BEATRICE. Indeed, my lord, he lent it me awhile; and I gave him use for it, a double heart for a single one: [...]"

  7. 12
    (law) the exercise of the legal right to enjoy the benefits of owning property wordnet
  8. 13
    Continued or repeated practice; usage; habit. archaic, countable, uncountable

    "Let later age that noble vse enuie,"

  9. 14
    (economics) the utilization of economic goods to satisfy needs or in manufacturing wordnet
  10. 15
    Common occurrence; ordinary experience. countable, obsolete, uncountable

    "O Caesar! these things are beyond all use."

  11. 16
    A special form of a rite adopted for use in a particular context, often a diocese. countable, uncountable

    "the Sarum, or Canterbury, use; the York use; the Ordinariate use"

  12. 17
    A slab of iron welded to the side of a forging, such as a shaft, near the end, and afterward drawn down, by hammering, so as to lengthen the forging. countable, uncountable
Verb
  1. 1
    To utilize or employ.; To employ; to apply; to utilize. transitive

    "Use this knife to slice the bread."

  2. 2
    use up (resources or materials) wordnet
  3. 3
    To utilize or employ.; To expend; to consume by employing. often, transitive, with-up

    "I used the money they allotted me."

  4. 4
    put into service; make work or employ for a particular purpose or for its inherent or natural purpose wordnet
  5. 5
    To utilize or employ.; To exploit. transitive

    "You never cared about me; you just used me!"

Show 13 more definitions
  1. 6
    take or consume (regularly or habitually) wordnet
  2. 7
    To utilize or employ.; To consume (alcohol, drugs, etc), especially regularly. transitive

    "He uses cocaine."

  3. 8
    habitually do something or be in a certain state or place (use only in the past tense) wordnet
  4. 9
    To utilize or employ.; To consume a previously specified substance, especially a drug to which one is addicted. intransitive

    "Richard began experimenting with cocaine last year; now he uses almost every day."

  5. 10
    avail oneself to wordnet
  6. 11
    To utilize or employ.; To benefit from; to be able to employ or stand. transitive

    "I could use a drink."

  7. 12
    seek or achieve an end by using to one's advantage wordnet
  8. 13
    To utilize or employ.; To suggest or request that other people employ a specific set of gender pronouns when referring to the subject. transitive

    "I use they/them pronouns."

  9. 14
    To accustom; to habituate. (Now common only in participial form. Uses the same pronunciation as the noun; see usage notes.)

    "soldiers who are used to hardships and danger"

  10. 15
    To accustom; to habituate. (Now common only in participial form. Uses the same pronunciation as the noun; see usage notes.); To accustom oneself. obsolete, reflexive

    "It is not without some difficulty, that a man born in society can form an idea of such savages, and their condition; and unless he has used himself to abstract thinking, he can hardly represent to himself such a state of simplicity, in which man can have so few desires, and no appetites roving beyond the immediate call of untaught nature […]"

  11. 16
    To habitually do; to be wont to do. (Now chiefly in past-tense forms; see used to.) intransitive

    "I used to get things done."

  12. 17
    To behave toward; to act with regard to; to treat. dated

    "to use an animal cruelly"

  13. 18
    To behave, act, comport oneself. obsolete, reflexive

    "1551, Thomas More, Utopia, London: B. Alsop & T. Fawcet, 1639, “Of Bond-men, Sicke persons, Wedlocke, and divers other matters,” page 231, They live together lovingly: For no Magistrate is either haughty or fearefull. Fathers they be called, and like fathers they use themselves."

Synonyms

All synonyms
employmentfunctionpurposeutilizationablationabsolute interest

Example

"It's no use pretending to make me believe that I believe things you don't believe!"

Common questions

What does "use" mean?

The act of using.

What is a synonym for "use"?

Common synonyms include: employment, function, purpose, utilization, ablation, absolute interest.

How do you use "use" in a sentence?

It's no use pretending to make me believe that I believe things you don't believe!

How do you pronounce "use"?

Pronounced /juːs/.

Etymology

Noun from Middle English use, from Old French us, from Latin ūsus (“use, custom, skill, habit”), from past participle stem of ūtor (“use”). Displaced native Middle English note (“use”) (see note) from Old English notu, Middle English nutte (“use”) from Old English nytt, Old English fricu, and Old English sidu. Verb from Middle English usen, from Old French user (“use, employ, practice”), from Medieval Latin usare (“use”), frequentative form of past participle stem of Latin uti (“to use”). Displaced native Middle English noten, nutten (“to use”) (from Old English notian, nēotan, nyttian) and Middle English brouken, bruken (“to use, enjoy”) (from Old English brūcan).

More for "use"

Synonyms

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