confer
Americanverb (used without object)
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confers,
present (3rd person singular)
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conferred,
past participle, past
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conferring
present participle
verb (used with object)
-
confers,
present (3rd person singular)
-
conferred,
past participle, past
-
conferring
present participle
-
to bestow upon as a gift, favor, honor, etc..
to confer a degree on a graduate.
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Obsolete. to compare.
verb
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(tr; foll by on or upon) to grant or bestow (an honour, gift, etc)
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(intr) to hold or take part in a conference or consult together
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(tr) an obsolete word for compare
Synonym Usage
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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confermentnoun
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conferrernoun
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reconferverb
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preconferverb (used without object)
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conferrableadjective
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nonconferrableadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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confersimple
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conferssimple
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have conferredperfect
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has conferredperfect
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am conferringprogressive
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are conferringprogressive
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is conferringprogressive
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have been conferringperfect progressive
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has been conferringperfect progressive
Past
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conferredsimple
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had conferredperfect
-
was conferringprogressive
-
were conferringprogressive
-
had been conferringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of confer
First recorded in 1400–50 for earlier sense “to summon”; 1520–30 for current senses; late Middle English conferen, from Latin conferre “to bring together, compare, consult with,” equivalent to con- “with, together, completely” ( see con-) + ferre “to carry, bear” ( see bear 1)
Explanation
If you gab, chat, and talk it up with someone, you have conversation, but if you're looking for input from each other as you talk, you confer, or consult, together. They had a family meeting to confer about a schedule for sharing the new laptop. Many uses of the verb confer involve consulting with another person or as a group. Confer has a second use meaning "bestow," which means to award or hand over something. You can confer a medal on a winner or hero, or you can confer status through a promotion or assignment. Each year the teacher would confer the special honor of summer hamster-sitter on one responsible student.
Vocabulary lists containing confer
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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"The Great Gatsby," Chapter 1 Vocabulary
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Refugee
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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:
But in a city where wealth and power can confer its own kind of celebrity status, the names announced Thursday weren’t among those appearing in boldface in society columns.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026
Different types of workouts also confer their own benefits when it comes to health and weight maintenance.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 22, 2026
That’s why older first-time parents should confer with their own parents to tackle the “who’s going to take care of you?” question.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 1, 2026
“The 245 gives us the opportunity to meet and confer and see if there are revisions or additions or mitigation that can better protect the full community,” McOsker said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 27, 2026
I was anxious to see my family and confer with Sabata and Daliwonga on certain problems involving the Transkei, while the ANC was eager that I confer with them on political matters.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
Article 4, Section 3 of the Constitution confers on Congress the exclusive power to “dispose of and make all needful Rules and Regulations respecting the … property of the United States.”
From Slate ● Aug. 17, 2026
At the heart of the case is the interpretation of the Fourteenth Amendment’s Citizenship Clause, which confers citizenship on anyone “born … in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof.”
From Barron's ● Jun. 30, 2026
And while it confers some key benefits — particularly a 2% reward on Costco purchases, delivered annually in the form of a store certificate — it isn’t necessarily a VIP-type program.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 13, 2026
"Our work lays the foundation and provides preclinical evidence for a therapeutic approach for Rett syndrome that increases MeCP2 and confers functional improvement," Zoghbi said.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 6, 2026
“All right, everybody, let’s open our books, because science confers power on anyone who takes the trouble to learn it.”
From "Shine!" by J.J. and Chris Grabenstein
The Fields Medal is conferred every four years upon up to four outstanding mathematicians under the age of 40.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 24, 2026
It’s clear they also wanted to maintain the impunity conferred by America’s superpower status.
From Salon ● Jul. 19, 2026
Alexander Hamilton noted in Federalist No. 32 that the constitutional requirement of a “uniform” naturalization law conferred exclusive jurisdiction on the federal government, to the exclusion of the states.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 1, 2026
"Parliament was alive to the fact that those powers conferred on the secretary of state were significant powers," Sir James told the judges.
From BBC ● Apr. 28, 2026
He simply handed the matter to his superiors, who conferred with their equivalents at Deutsche Bank, and finally agreed to wire over $600 million.
From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis
Gulf states aren’t the only ones conferring with the White House.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 26, 2026
Downing Street published a list of the nominations, external and said the King "has been graciously pleased to signify his intention of conferring peerages".
From BBC ● Jul. 16, 2026
As the Bank of Southwark went public in Philadelphia, investors hired muscular goons to sign their names into the subscription books conferring the right to buy shares.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 7, 2026
"After conferring with the league office, because Lamar didn't take starter reps in practice, we updated our report to reflect his practice participation," the Ravens said.
From Barron's ● Oct. 31, 2025
“Lumawoo,” he said after the children had done conferring.
From "The Unseen Guest" by Maryrose Wood
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.
