collect
1 Americanverb (used with object)
-
collects,
present (3rd person singular)
-
collected,
past participle, past
-
collecting
present participle
-
to gather together; assemble.
The professor collected the students' exams.
-
to accumulate; make a collection of.
to collect stamps.
- Antonyms:
- scatter, distribute
-
to receive or compel payment of.
to collect a bill.
-
to regain control of (oneself or one's thoughts, faculties, composure, or the like).
At the news of her promotion, she took a few minutes to collect herself.
-
to call for and take with one: They collected their mail.
He drove off to collect his guests.
They collected their mail.
-
Manège. to bring (a horse) into a collected attitude.
-
Archaic. to infer.
verb (used without object)
-
collects,
present (3rd person singular)
-
collected,
past participle, past
-
collecting
present participle
-
to gather together; assemble.
The students collected in the assembly hall.
-
to accumulate.
Rainwater collected in the barrel.
-
to receive payment (often followed byon ).
He collected on the damage to his house.
-
to gather or bring together books, stamps, coins, etc., usually as a hobby.
He's been collecting for years.
-
Manège. (of a horse) to come into a collected attitude.
adjective
noun
verb
-
to gather together or be gathered together
-
to accumulate (stamps, books, etc) as a hobby or for study
-
(tr) to call for or receive payment of (taxes, dues, etc)
-
(tr) to regain control of (oneself, one's emotions, etc) as after a shock or surprise
he collected his wits
-
(tr) to fetch; pick up
collect your own post
he collected the children after school
-
slang to receive large sums of money, as from an investment
he really collected when the will was read
-
informal (tr) to collide with; be hit by
-
the US term for cash on delivery
adverb
noun
noun
Synonym Usage
See gather.
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
collectsimple
-
collectssimple
-
have collectedperfect
-
has collectedperfect
-
am collectingprogressive
-
are collectingprogressive
-
is collectingprogressive
-
have been collectingperfect progressive
-
has been collectingperfect progressive
Past
-
collectedsimple
-
had collectedperfect
-
was collectingprogressive
-
were collectingprogressive
-
had been collectingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of collect1
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English, from Latin collēctus (past participle of colligere “to collect”), equivalent to col- “with, together” + leg- (stem of legere “to gather”) + -tus past participle suffix; see col- 1
Origin of collect2
First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English collecte, from Old French collecte, colete, and Medieval Latin collecta, short for ōrātiō ad collēctam “prayer at collection”; see origin at collect 1
Explanation
The verb collect describes gathering or bringing something together. Charity organizations often collect warm coats for people in need. Other people who want to help those in need seek monetary donations. If you volunteer for a charity, you may collect on behalf of the charity — meaning you get donations. Collect can also refer to getting payment for money that is owed. If you owe money to someone, eventually he'll find you and say, "I'm here to collect."
Vocabulary lists containing collect
Gimme, Gimme, Gimme
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"A Natural Balance" and "In My Dreams"
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Cormac McCarthy's "The Road"
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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:
With apparent credibility, they then send fake jobs to job seekers to collect their information.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 22, 2026
One core sampler will collect material from depths of up to 2 cm.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 19, 2026
For many diseases, it is impossible or impracticable to collect detailed, local-level prevalence data.
From Slate ● Sep. 17, 2026
Paltrow won and, rather than collect attorney’s fees from Sanderson, accepted the $1 payout and wished Sanderson well.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2026
“The drones were unable to collect the underwater plants. So, the Collective will need to forage samples in person. Risk is high, so the Zeta unit will collect these among other specimens we need.”
From "The Last Cuentista" by Donna Barba Higuera
It includes two cameras that capture detailed black-and-white images and another camera that collects moderate-resolution multispectral images.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 18, 2026
Felix, a food redistribution charity, collects surplus food from shops and other providers so that it is not thrown away or incinerated.
From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2026
He’s what is commonly referred to as a “sneakerhead,” someone who collects an array of athletic shoes that range in price from a few hundred dollars to several thousand.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 7, 2026
This business includes sales of apps where Apple collects as much as 30% fees on in-app purchases.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 1, 2026
While Johanna collects water and my arrows, Beetee fiddles with his wire, and Finnick takes to the water.
From "Catching Fire" by Suzanne Collins
FBI agents had collected voluminous corporate records and email correspondence between Navatek and Collins’ inner circle.
From Salon ● Sep. 23, 2026
The collected samples are expected to return to Earth by mid 2031 inside a capsule designed to survive re-entry through Earth's atmosphere.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 19, 2026
"I picked soybeans and chickpeas in other people's fields. I also collected turmeric, processed it and sold it."
From BBC ● Sep. 19, 2026
Other companies, including Disney and Apple, have also been hit with lawsuits alleging they illegally collected biometric data without people’s consent.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 18, 2026
When the Hitler Youth collected, most people gave because to refuse could mean a black mark against them.
From "Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's Shadow" by Susan Campbell Bartoletti
Wolfe’s collecting and sale of vigango sculptures have drawn scrutiny.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 22, 2026
The ability to anticipate these eruptions may become particularly useful for major future observatories, including the Square Kilometre Array radio telescope project, which is expected to begin collecting scientific data in 2028.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 21, 2026
Without collecting race and ethnicity data in the census, these estimates could not be produced, needlessly wasting resources and endangering lives.
From Slate ● Sep. 17, 2026
Hall said the satisfaction of collecting a set and "chasing certain cards" in that set was a huge part of the enjoyment, and described the moment of pulling the desired card as "euphoric".
From BBC ● Sep. 15, 2026
But it had ground to a halt weeks ago and was now just collecting dust in a far corner of the property.
From "The Wild Robot Escapes" by Peter Brown
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
