appoint
Americanverb (used with object)
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appoints,
present (3rd person singular)
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appointed,
past participle, past
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appointing
present participle
-
to name or assign to a position, an office, or the like; designate.
to appoint a new treasurer; to appoint a judge to the bench.
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to determine by authority or agreement; fix; set.
to appoint a time for the meeting.
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Law. to designate (a person) to take the benefit of an estate created by a deed or will.
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to provide with what is necessary; equip; furnish.
They appointed the house with all the latest devices.
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Archaic. to order or establish by decree or command; ordain; constitute.
laws appointed by God.
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Obsolete. to point at by way of censure.
verb (used without object)
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appoints,
present (3rd person singular)
-
appointed,
past participle, past
-
appointing
present participle
verb
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(also intr) to assign officially, as for a position, responsibility, etc
he was appointed manager
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to establish by agreement or decree; fix
a time was appointed for the duel
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to prescribe or ordain
laws appointed by tribunal
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property law to nominate (a person), under a power granted in a deed or will, to take an interest in property
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to equip with necessary or usual features; furnish
a well-appointed hotel
Synonym Usage
See furnish.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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appointernoun
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misappointverb (used with object)
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reappointverb (used with object)
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appointableadjective
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unappointableadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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appointsimple
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appointssimple
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have appointedperfect
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has appointedperfect
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am appointingprogressive
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are appointingprogressive
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is appointingprogressive
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have been appointingperfect progressive
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has been appointingperfect progressive
Past
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appointedsimple
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had appointedperfect
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was appointingprogressive
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were appointingprogressive
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had been appointingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of appoint
1325–75; Middle English apointen, from Middle French apointer, equivalent to a- a- 5 + pointer “to point ”
Explanation
The President can appoint someone as ambassador to another county; that means to give them the job or recommend them for it. It must be nice to be appointed. Usually, people who want a job have to send in applications, do interviews, and jump through lots of hoops. Appointing is different: someone with the power to appoint can usually just give you the job. In some cases, appointing isn't a sure thing and means something closer to "recommending" — but it still beats filling out all those applications. It takes power to appoint people, which is why world leaders are often the ones appointing.
Vocabulary lists containing appoint
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The report said the former Chelsea manager had demanded full control of United's transfer policy and stated his intention to appoint his own staff at Old Trafford.
From BBC ● Oct. 23, 2026
The document states that a majority of the seven-member board must be U.S. citizens at all times, and the U.S. government can appoint one “non-voting observer” to join the group.
From Salon ● Oct. 23, 2026
It was the capital of Thuringia, which in 1930 became the first German state to appoint a Nazi minister.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026
During that event, she promised to hire a chief financial officer to improve coordination between city agencies and appoint a new recovery czar for the burned areas of Pacific Palisades.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 14, 2026
It was a sign of his humility and selflessness that he wanted to appoint me president, but it was not in keeping with the principles of the ANC.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
The amended merger agreement also removes a requirement that ON Semiconductor appoints a member of Synaptics’ board of directors to its own board.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026
Under Morocco's constitution, the king appoints the head of government from the party that comes first in elections to the House of Representatives.
From BBC ● Sep. 29, 2026
If you decline before the court appoints you, you simply do not file a petition for letters testamentary.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 7, 2026
Bass sits on LAHSA’s 10-member board and appoints four of its members.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2026
Caroline appoints me official art director of the paper chain, which means I’m going to have to do most of it and supervise the rest.
From "Linked" by Gordon Korman
The rest would be appointed by the mayor.
From BBC ● Oct. 24, 2026
On Sunday, Iran’s parliament appointed Mehrdad Akhlaghi, one of the fathers of the country’s ballistic program, as defense minister.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2026
On the appointed evening, Drew and I watched the sun set over the Pacific with an intimate coterie of dear friends, imbibing cocktails, mocktails and my favorite Schramsberg sparkling wine.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 23, 2026
Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit found that Habba was not lawfully appointed to that post as well, disqualifying her from the position.
From Salon ● Oct. 22, 2026
“I know you! You were not where you were meant to be! I arrived at the appointed time, and you were not there!”
From "Half Upon a Time" by James Riley
A two-person management committee would assume day-to-day responsibilities, with Overdeck and Siegel each appointing their own delegate.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 19, 2026
The EU insists it is working on several fronts, mobilising funds from various existing schemes, and appointing a Siemens executive to push manufacturers to integrate the technology under a strategy called "Apply AI".
From Barron's ● Oct. 14, 2026
The former is specific to life-sustaining decisions, while the latter is a more far-reaching document overseeing a range of decisions like appointing a healthcare agent and deciding on hospital choices or even nursing homes.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 14, 2026
Dish argued that appointing a trustee would introduce significant disruption and cost to the case and exacerbate liquidity pressures.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026
Time was so short, the Executive Committee began planning exhibits and appointing world’s fair commissioners to secure them.
From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson
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