If you can't have children, you could always adopt.
Source: tatoeba (1836)
Adopt
/əˈdɒpt/
Synonyms for "adopt" (222 found)
Ranked by relevance and common usage.
Closest matches (45)
Verb(15 words)
Noun(14 words)
acquiringafrikaans leeralgorithm design methodologyapply scientific methodapproach the topicapproach to learningappropriatingart trendassimilatingassumingbandwagonborrowed lexemeborrowed word formborrowing
Adjective(2 words)
american history textbook approachborrowed books
Strong matches (66)
Verb(23 words)
Noun(20 words)
Adjective(3 words)
communal decision making modelcommunal decision making policyenvironmental system approach
Related words (111)
Verb(24 words)
ingraininheritinnovatesinternalizeinternalizesintroducelatchedlegislatedmimickedpersuadedradicalizedraiserearresortedselectsubscribesubscribedsweep uptaketake in
Show 4 more words
Noun(40 words)
instituteinternalizinglanguage borrowinglanguage education trendlatchlatcheslearning strategymagpiesmainstreammainstreamingminoanizingmodel organisms approachmodel schoolmost policy movepassespolicy movepolitical transition processposingpositionpostures
Show 20 more words
project based curriculumproject organization approachresortresortingresortsrole playsecret code protocolservice learning pedagogyservice orientedset beliefsstate change verbsystems thinking classroomtech pioneersthe livingtransitionuptakesuse fixed groupingwelcomeswhole organism approachwhole organism study
invadejump a claimmake free withmake use ofmockmonopolizenaturalizeoccupyoverrunpasspirateplagiarizeplay godpreemptpreoccupyprepossesspretendpretend toratifyrequisition
Adjective(8 words)
legal measurenatural system approachnew convertroman brandingshared creedshared decision making processshared software componentsustainable practice
Determiner(1 words)
more waste management system
Choosing the right synonym
- Closest matches in this entry: assume, embrace, accept, accept, accepted.
- Sentence evidence is available for adopt, so synonym choice can be checked against real usage rather than a flat word list.
- Ranking signals come from wordnet, opengloss, moby, derived_reverse, and related lexical sources.
Synonym selection checklist
- Match the part of speech before comparing meanings.
- Check whether the synonym changes intensity, formality, or emotional tone.
- Read the replacement inside the full sentence, not just beside "adopt".
- Prefer the clearest word over the most unusual word when writing for speed or comprehension.
When not to replace "adopt"
Keep "adopt" when the sentence already sounds natural, when a synonym would add unintended emphasis, or when readers need the most familiar wording. A synonym should clarify or sharpen the message, not simply make the sentence look more varied.
If two options seem close, choose the one that best matches the audience and purpose of the sentence.
Replacement workflow
1. Preserve meaning
Choose a synonym only if it keeps the core idea of "adopt" intact in the sentence you are editing.
2. Tune tone
Check whether the replacement sounds more formal, casual, emotional, technical, or forceful than the original word.
3. Re-read context
Read the full sentence after the swap. Keep the synonym only when the sentence becomes clearer or more precise.
Review note: Synonym lists are ranked with lexical data and reviewed for practical writing value. Use the comparison notes, sentence evidence, and source labels together; a high-ranking synonym can still be wrong when the audience, register, or grammar changes.
Final fit check
After choosing a replacement for "adopt", read the sentence once for meaning and once for rhythm. The best synonym should feel natural in the full sentence, not only accurate in a word list.
If the synonym makes the sentence slower, vaguer, or more dramatic than intended, keep "adopt" or choose a simpler alternative from the closest-match group.
Related word relations
OpenGloss and ConceptNet supply richer edges like generalizations, collocations, and derivations.
More general
13 entriesMore specific
10 entriesdomestic adoptionguidelines adoptioninternational adoptionmethod adoptionpolicy adoptionstance adoptionstandards adoptiontechnology adoptiontheory adoptionviewpoint adoption
Collocations
6 entriesadopt a frameworkadopt a methodadopt a policyadopt a stanceadopt an approachadopt core values
Inflections
3 entriesDerivations
3 entriessimilar
3 entriesTranslations
71 translations across 51 languages.
Arabic
1 entries- تَبَنَّى verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Armenian
1 entries- որդեգրել verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Aromanian
1 entries- nhiljedz verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Bulgarian
2 entries- осиновя́ verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
- осиновя́вам verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Catalan
1 entries- adoptar verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Chinese Mandarin
1 entries- 收養 /收养 verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Cornish
2 entries- adoptya verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
- asvaba verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Czech
2 entries- adoptovat verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
- osvojit verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Danish
1 entries- adoptere verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Dutch
2 entries- aannemen verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
- adopteren verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Esperanto
1 entries- adopti verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Faroese
1 entries- ættleiða verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Finnish
1 entries- adoptoida verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
French
1 entries- adopter verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Galician
2 entries- adoptar verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
- porfillar verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
German
1 entries- adoptieren verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Greek
1 entries- υιοθετώ verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Haitian Creole
1 entries- adokte verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Hebrew
1 entries- אִמֵּץ verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Hungarian
3 entries- adoptál verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
- befogad verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
- örökbe fogad verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Icelandic
1 entries- ættleiða verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Italian
1 entries- adottare verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Japanese
1 entries- 養子にする verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Khmer
1 entries- ចិញ្ចឹម verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Korean
1 entries- 입양하다 verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Latin
1 entries- adoptō verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Latvian
1 entries- adoptēt verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Malay
1 entries- angkat verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Norwegian Bokmål
1 entries- adoptere verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Norwegian Nynorsk
1 entries- adoptera verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Old English
1 entries- ġewȳsċan verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Persian
1 entries- پذیرفتن verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Polish
4 entries- adoptować verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
- przysposabiać verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
- przysposobić verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
- zaadoptować verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Portuguese
1 entries- adotar verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Quechua
1 entries- churichakuy verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Romanian
1 entries- adopta verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Russian
4 entries- удочери́ть verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
- удочеря́ть verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
- усынови́ть verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
- усыновля́ть verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Scottish Gaelic
1 entries- uchd-mhacaich verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Serbo-Croatian
3 entries- posvojiti verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
- usvojiti verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
- усвојити verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Slovak
2 entries- adoptovať verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
- osvojiť si verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Spanish
2 entries- adoptar verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
- ahijar verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Swahili
1 entries- panga verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Swedish
1 entries- adoptera verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Tamil
1 entries- தத்தெடு verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Telugu
1 entries- పెంచుకొను verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Turkish
1 entries- evlat edinmek verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Ukrainian
4 entries- вдочеря́ти verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
- всино́влювати verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
- удочеря́ти verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
- усино́влювати verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Vietnamese
1 entries- nhận làm con nuôi verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Welsh
1 entries- mabwysiadu verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Yiddish
1 entries- אַדאָפּטירן verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Zazaki
1 entries- depıtene verb (to take by choice into relationship, as, child, heir, friend, citizen)
Sample sentences
26 total sentences available.
We have decided to adopt your idea.
Source: tatoeba (17170)
We will adopt your method at our school.
Source: tatoeba (23441)
All things considered, we'll adopt his project.
Source: tatoeba (51668)
Showing 4 of 26 available sentences.
Common questions
What are the closest synonyms for "adopt"?
Closest matches include assume, embrace, accept, accept, accepted.
How should I check whether a synonym fits "adopt"?
Compare the replacement against real sentence context. This entry includes sample sentences so you can check tone, grammar, and meaning before swapping words.