correct
Americanverb (used with object)
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to set or make true, accurate, or right; remove the errors or faults from: The new glasses corrected his eyesight.
The native guide corrected our pronunciation.
The new glasses corrected his eyesight.
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to point out or mark the errors in.
The teacher corrected the examination papers.
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to scold, rebuke, or punish in order to improve.
Should parents correct their children in public?
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to counteract the operation or effect of (something hurtful or undesirable).
The medication will correct stomach acidity.
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Mathematics, Physics. to alter or adjust so as to bring into accordance with a standard or with a required condition.
verb (used without object)
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to make a correction or corrections.
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(of stock prices) to reverse a trend, especially temporarily, as after a sharp advance or decline in previous trading sessions.
adjective
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conforming to fact or truth; free from error; accurate.
a correct answer.
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in accordance with an acknowledged or accepted standard; proper.
correct behavior.
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(of a judgment or opinion) just or right.
I feel this decision is correct because of the defendant’s age.
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characterized by or adhering to a liberal or progressive ideology on matters of ethnicity, religion, sexuality, ecology, etc..
Is it environmentally correct to buy a real Christmas tree?
Most of the judges in this district have correct political views.
verb
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to make free from errors
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to indicate the errors in
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to rebuke or punish in order to set right or improve
to correct a child
to stand corrected
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to counteract or rectify (a malfunction, ailment, etc)
these glasses will correct your sight
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to adjust or make conform, esp to a standard
adjective
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free from error; true; accurate
the correct version
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in conformity with accepted standards
correct behaviour
Synonym Usage
See punish. Correct, accurate, precise imply conformity to fact, standard, or truth. A correct statement is one free from error, mistakes, or faults. An accurate statement is one that shows careful conformity to fact, truth, or spirit. A precise statement shows scrupulously strict and detailed conformity to fact.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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correctabilitynoun
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correctibilitynoun
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correctnessnoun
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correctornoun
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recorrectverb (used with object)
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correctableadjective
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correctibleadjective
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uncorrectedadjective
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well-correctedadjective
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correctlyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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correctsimple
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correctssimple
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have correctedperfect
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has correctedperfect
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am correctingprogressive
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are correctingprogressive
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is correctingprogressive
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have been correctingperfect progressive
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has been correctingperfect progressive
Past
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correctedsimple
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had correctedperfect
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was correctingprogressive
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were correctingprogressive
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had been correctingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of correct
First recorded in 1300–50; (verb) Middle English correcten, from Anglo-French correcter, from Latin corrēctus (past participle of corrigere “to make straight, set right”) equivalent to cor- cor- + reg- (stem of regere “to keep straight, make straight, guide” ( see direct) + -tus past participle suffix; (adjective) from French correct, from Latin, as above
Explanation
When something is true, legitimate or right, you can say it's correct, using the word as an adjective. It can also be a verb; to correct wrong answers is to adjust them to make them right. The origin of correct can be found in the Latin word regere, "to guide," which became correctus as the past participle of corrigere, meaning "to straighten." When you correct your posture, you sit up straight. Sometimes when your cell phone tries to correct your spelling you can end up with some amusing sentences.
Vocabulary lists containing correct
Century 21 Accounting, 9e, Chapters 4-7
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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:
A few days after an appointment, check your portal, look at everything listed on the bill and verify that the items listed are correct.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 28, 2026
Most existing diabetes medications do not directly correct the protein-folding problems that may contribute to beta cell failure.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 28, 2026
Making sure paperwork is correct is one of the most important tasks, because one mistake can lead to forfeits.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026
"Now that the government claims to have increased prison capacity, there is a clear opportunity for Burnham to correct some of the mistakes made by his predecessors with this scheme."
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
Before we can carve the obelisk, it is important to select the correct piece of granite.
From "The (Mostly) True Story of Cleopatra's Needle" by Dan Gutman
“It’s not a romance, it’s a love story,” she immediately corrects him.
From Salon ● Jun. 4, 2026
As the market corrects its math, the quality names should outperform.
From Barron's ● May 29, 2026
The historian Rachel Trethewey corrects that in a lively biography, “Muv,” which takes its title from the nickname Sydney’s children bestowed on her.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 31, 2026
This repair system, known as DNA mismatch repair, corrects mistakes that occur when cells copy genetic material.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 15, 2026
Neither of us corrects her, which definitely hasn’t gone unnoticed.
From "Starfish" by Akemi Dawn Bowman
Hunter noted that since early July, the SOX index has corrected 20% and the hyperscaler group “has bounced within its broad 2026 trading range.”
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 23, 2026
Impressively, she corrected her slide to prevail in the end, 6-2, 5-7, 6-3.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 12, 2026
If VAR had been available, Scottish referee Hugh Dallas could have corrected the missed call, awarding a penalty and giving Frings a red card, expelling him for the final 40 minutes.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 12, 2026
The theme wasn't the wedding but the World Cup, of which the US is a co-host, and William jokingly corrected Travis that it was "football" and not "soccer".
From BBC ● Jul. 3, 2026
“He was still Maximilian that first morning,” Josie corrected.
From "The School for Whatnots" by Margaret Peterson Haddix
In an ancient form of marking homework, a second person's hand can be seen changing mistakes, "going along and correcting them later and adding breath marks", he said.
From BBC ● Jul. 23, 2026
Coleman explained that when answering the phones, the first step is often correcting the way callers think.
From Slate ● Jun. 15, 2026
It could also lower the dollar, further correcting those deficits.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 12, 2026
Treating old stem cells with the lysosomal inhibitor increased their blood-forming ability in living animals by more than eightfold, highlighting the powerful regenerative effects of correcting lysosomal dysfunction.
From Science Daily ● May 12, 2026
I might appear like I’m correcting him again.
From "The Adoration of Jenna Fox" by Mary E. Pearson
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.
