dispose
Americanverb (used with object)
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disposes,
present (3rd person singular)
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disposed,
past participle, past
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disposing
present participle
-
to give a tendency or inclination to; incline.
His temperament disposed him to argue readily with people.
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to put in a particular or the proper order or arrangement; adjust by arranging the parts.
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to put in a particular or suitable place.
The lamp was disposed on a table nearby.
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to make fit or ready; prepare.
Your words of cheer dispose me for the task.
verb (used without object)
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disposes,
present (3rd person singular)
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disposed,
past participle, past
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disposing
present participle
-
to arrange or decide matters.
to do as God disposes.
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Obsolete. to make terms.
noun
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Archaic. disposition; habit.
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Obsolete. arrangement; regulation; disposal.
verb phrase
verb
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to deal with or settle
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to give, sell, or transfer to another
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to throw out or away
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to consume, esp hurriedly
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to kill
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-
to arrange or settle (matters) by placing into correct or final condition
man proposes, God disposes
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(tr) to make willing or receptive
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(tr) to adjust or place in a certain order or position
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to accustom or condition
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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disposesimple
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disposessimple
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have disposedperfect
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has disposedperfect
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am disposingprogressive
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are disposingprogressive
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is disposingprogressive
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have been disposingperfect progressive
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has been disposingperfect progressive
Past
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disposedsimple
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had disposedperfect
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was disposingprogressive
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were disposingprogressive
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had been disposingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of dispose
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English, from Middle French disposer, equivalent to dis- dis- 1 + poser “to place” ( see pose 1), on the model of Latin dispōnere
Explanation
If you dispose of something, you get rid of it. Don't want that sweatshirt with the clown's face on it? Give it away, throw it out, even sell it — these are all ways to dispose of that awful shirt. The verb dispose comes from the Latin word disponere, meaning “put in order,” “arrange,” or “distribute" — like when you dispose volunteers to collect trash at a park. The word of usually follows dispose when it means "getting rid of something." Another meaning is "make willing or open to something," like your childhood love of reading that disposes you to becoming a life-long reader.
Vocabulary lists containing dispose
Life Is So Good
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Good Riddance
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Henry David Thoreau "Civil Disobedience" (1849)
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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:
Finding somewhere to dispose of the trash they collect also can be difficult.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 3, 2026
The advice is simple: Speak to your GP or pharmacy about obtaining a sharps bin and how to dispose of it safely.
From BBC ● Oct. 29, 2026
Collectibles, Novack noted, are hard to dispose of, too.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 8, 2026
Over the longer term, Public Bank might dispose its Public Financial stake to unlock value and free up capital, given Hong Kong’s competitive market, he adds.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026
We had to dispose of it outside the camp.
From "Night" by Elie Wiesel
A senior administration official Sunday detailed a three-part framework in which Iran reopens the Strait of Hormuz and disposes of its enriched uranium while the U.S. unwinds its blockade in Iranian ports.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 26, 2026
But instead of deciding the case at the end of June when the court ordinarily disposes of the cases heard during the term, the court set the case up for re-argument.
From Slate ● Aug. 4, 2025
Do they think there is some sort of pickup service that comes along and disposes of their carefully collected excrement?
From Seattle Times ● May 3, 2024
La Mariana said in addition to waste and recycling material, it takes electronic waste and disposes of it for free for residents.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 8, 2023
Collectively, the Party owns everything in Oceania, because it controls everything and disposes of the products as it thinks fit.
From "1984" by George Orwell
Used needles should be disposed of separately through dedicated clinical waste services.
From BBC ● Oct. 29, 2026
“The beach and Pacific Coast Highway were momentarily shut down while the ordnance was disposed of in place,” the post stated.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 29, 2026
After the Second World War ended, the Allies disposed of tons of ammunition by dumping it into the ocean so it could not fall into the wrong hands.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 14, 2026
"When he was moving about nine months to a year later, the skeleton was disposed of into the bins," Singh added.
From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026
The servants were called in, the dining-room tables wheeled away, the lights otherwise disposed, the chairs placed in a semicircle opposite the arch.
From "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Brontë
At the cellular level, keeping muscles healthy requires a careful balance between producing new proteins and disposing of old or damaged ones.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 16, 2026
"But disposing of broken items we can't sell, unfortunately does cost the hospice money," Rowan adds.
From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2026
In Arizona, streams are mostly dry, and the state has many water-intensive mining projects, each with systems for draining stormwater and disposing of water used in minerals processing.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 10, 2026
These meanings haven’t been conveyed to the consumer, who, in their confusion, may unintentionally contribute to food waste by disposing of food they believe is spoiled.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 26, 2026
Many were there to provide various services to the men who did— doing their laundry, cooking their meals at the mess hall, selling them various sundries, disposing of their trash.
From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
