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• fit
  fit

  adjective

  adapted or suited; appropriate.
• FIT
  FIT

  Federal Insurance Tax.

fit

¹ American  

[fit] / fɪt /

adjective

• fitter,
  comparative
• fittest
  superlative

1. adapted or suited; appropriate.

   This water isn't fit for drinking.

   A long-necked giraffe is fit for browsing treetops.

   Synonyms:

   apropos, applicable, meet, proper, apt, suitable

2. proper or becoming.

   This is not fit behavior for a funeral service.

   Synonyms:

   befitting, fitting

3. qualified or competent, as for an office or function.

   It took several interviews to find a fit candidate for the position.

4. prepared or ready.

   Constant updating of methods and equipment will ensure that we're fit for the future.

5. in good physical condition; in good health.

   He's fit for the race.

   Synonyms:

   robust, strong, hardy, hale, healthy

6. Biology.

   1. being adapted to the prevailing conditions and producing offspring that survive to reproductive age.

   2. contributing genetic information to the gene pool of the next generation.

   3. (of a population) maintaining or increasing the group's numbers in the environment.

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verb (used with object)

fitted, fit, fitting

1. to be adapted to or suitable for (a purpose, object, occasion, etc.).

2. to be proper or becoming for.

3. to be of the right size or shape for.

   The dress fitted her perfectly.

4. to adjust or make conform.

   She had the jeweler fit the ring to her finger.

5. to make qualified or competent.

   Courage and patience are among the qualities that fit a person for leadership.

6. to prepare.

   This school fits students for college.

7. to put with precise placement or adjustment.

   He fitted the picture into the frame.

8. to provide; furnish; equip.

   I fitted the cabinet door with a new handle.

9. Statistics. to predict, calculate, or project (values) according to a model based on existing data.

verb (used without object)

fitted, fit, fitting

1. to be suitable or proper.

2. to be of the right size or shape, as a garment for the wearer or any object or part for a thing to which it is applied.

   The shoes fit.

noun

1. the manner in which a thing fits.

   The fit was perfect.

2. something that fits.

   The coat is a poor fit.

3. the process of fitting.

verb phrase

1. fit out / up to furnish with supplies, equipment, clothing, furniture, or other requisites; supply; equip.

   In Kathmandu they found a supplier to fit out the trekking expedition.

idioms

1. fit the bill. bill.

2. fit to kill, to the limit; exceedingly.

   She was dressed up fit to kill.

3. fit to be tied, extremely annoyed or angry.

   He was fit to be tied when I told him I'd wrecked the car.

fit ² American  

[fit] / fɪt /

noun

1. a sudden, acute attack or manifestation of a disease, especially one marked by convulsions or unconsciousness.

   a fit of epilepsy.

2. an onset, spell, or period of emotion, feeling, inclination, activity, etc..

   a fit of anger;

   a fit of weeping.

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idioms

1. by / in fits and starts, at irregular intervals; intermittently.

   This radio works by fits and starts.

2. throw a fit, to become extremely excited or angry.

   Your father will throw a fit when he hears what you have done.

fit ³ American  

[fit] / fɪt /

noun

Archaic.

1. a song, ballad, or story.

2. a division of a song, ballad, or story.

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fit ⁴ American  

[fit] / fɪt /

verb

Nonstandard (chiefly Older Use).

1. simple past tense of fight.

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FIT ⁵ American  

1. Banking. Federal Insurance Tax.

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fit ¹ British  

/ fɪt /

verb

1. to be appropriate or suitable for (a situation, etc)

2. to be of the correct size or shape for (a connection, container, etc)

3. (tr) to adjust in order to render appropriate

   they had to fit the idea to their philosophy

4. (tr) to supply with that which is needed

5. (tr) to try clothes on (someone) in order to make adjustments if necessary

6. (tr) to make competent or ready

   the experience helped to fit him for the task

7. (tr) to locate with care

8. (intr) to correspond with the facts or circumstances

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adjective

1. suitable to a purpose or design; appropriate

2. having the right qualifications; qualifying

3. in good health

4. worthy or deserving

   a book fit to be read

5. (foll by an infinitive) in such an extreme condition that a specified consequence is likely

   she was fit to scream

   you look fit to drop

6. informal (of a person) sexually attractive

noun

1. the manner in which something fits

2. the act or process of fitting

3. statistics the correspondence between observed and predicted characteristics of a distribution or model See goodness of fit

fit ² British  

/ fɪt /

noun

1. pathol a sudden attack or convulsion, such as an epileptic seizure

2. a sudden spell of emotion

   a fit of anger

3. an impulsive period of activity or lack of activity; mood

   a fit of laziness

4. to surprise a person in an outrageous manner

5. informal to become very angry or excited

6. in spasmodic spells; irregularly

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verb

1. informal (intr) to have a sudden attack or convulsion, such as an epileptic seizure

fit ³ British  

/ fɪt /

noun

1. archaic a story or song or a section of a story or song

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fit More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing fit

• give someone fits
• have a fit
• if the shoe fits
• see fit to
• survival of the fittest

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Usage

Both fit and fitted are standard as past tense and past participle of fit1 : The new door fit (or fitted ) the old frame perfectly. The suit had fitted (or fit ) well last year. Fitted is somewhat more common than fit in the sense “to adjust, make conform”: The tailor fitted the suit with a minimum of fuss. In the passive voice, fitted is the more common past participle: The door was fitted with a new handle.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• fittable
  adjective
• unfittable
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Adjectives

• fitter
  comparative
• fittest
  superlative

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Etymology

Origin of fit¹

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English fitten, fetten “to marshal or deploy troops; to be fitting, befit;” possibly from Old Norse fitja “to web, knit;” akin to Middle Dutch vitten “to befit”

Origin of fit²

First recorded before 1000; Middle English; Old English fitt “round of fighting”; see fit ³

Origin of fit³

First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English fitt “round of singing, canto, song, speech”

Origin of fit⁴

First recorded in 1805–10

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Explanation

"Don't have a fit about it!" someone might snap at you. Chances are you're making a fuss and acting out, characteristics that precisely fit or match what having a fit involves. Chill out. When something fits like a glove, it fits just right. When you put a glove on, you fit each finger into its place. The word fit can mean "matching the shape of something" or "being a good match," like two people who meet online and turn out to be a good fit for one another. But its definitions are not always so rosy. If you're really angry and find yourself throwing a tantrum, you're having a fit.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

fit FIT fitter fittest fitted fitting

"We're going to remove all the pews so we can fit as many wheelchairs as possible. We want people with disabilities to be the protagonists," director Jorge Silanes told AFP.

From Barron's ● Nov. 2, 2026

But before the Malibu property was transformed to fit the singer’s exact vision—which now includes an actual mall—it was a breathtaking coastal home she knew she had to have.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 2, 2026

“I just think that New York is a better fit for me where I’m at, at this moment. I can just follow the front pack and then hopefully be strong in the end.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 1, 2026

Carbert, who said he was feeling "fairly fit and well", has no intention of stopping and hopes to reach his target of 500 Parkruns, when he'll be nearly 90.

From BBC ● Oct. 31, 2026

They’re red, shabby, and the fit is a little snug.

From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold

Back in Russia, she signed up for extra classes to learn sewing in preparation for an FIT program.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 5, 2026

Those eligible for screening who are registered with a GP get a home FIT kit through the post every two years.

From BBC ● Mar. 31, 2026

The study, which has now appeared in the Journal of Cell Biology, found that FIT is a dynamic protein that can localise in membrane-less sub-compartments -- so-called biomolecular condensates -- within the cell.

From Science Daily ● Feb. 23, 2024

Earlier this year, the Museum at FIT celebrated hip-hop fashion with an exhibition titled "Fresh, Fly and Fabulous: 50 Years of Hip Hop Style."

From Reuters ● Sep. 5, 2023

Make the public-house FIT for women and children.

From The New Machiavelli by H. G. (Herbert George) Wells

Amid questions over his age, he boasted while campaigning that he was "fitter than ever", jogging during events and posting videos on social media of his gym workouts.

From Barron's ● Oct. 27, 2026

The people included in the study may have been healthier and fitter than the general population.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 8, 2026

"I wanted to get fitter, I wanted to get healthier, so I started going online and took social media very much at face value without understanding the facts."

From BBC ● Jul. 13, 2026

Plus, it’s a measure of progress—the fitter I get, the easier my heart works.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 7, 2026

One day she relented, and we set forth from the castle in a fitter enclosed by curtains and borne by servants.

From "Ophelia" by Lisa Klein

Young people who end up playing in the NFL are, by definition, by far the fittest and strongest in their schools and colleges.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 30, 2026

The movie projects contempt for the dense from its first frame, sharing a montage of recent pop culture as a stentorian narrator worries that modern conveniences have perverted the concept of survival of the fittest.

From Salon ● Sep. 6, 2026

In the meantime, it will be survival of the fittest drivers.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 18, 2026

"Given what I went through, it's wild that it's the only thing I'm left with. I'm the healthiest and fittest I've ever been," she says.

From BBC ● Mar. 7, 2026

“Um, with polar bears, it’s not survival of the fittest but survival of the fattest,” Owen told him.

From "Two Degrees" by Alan Gratz

The Monday launch involved strategic cruise missiles fitted with a new cluster-munition warhead, the official Korean Central News Agency reported Tuesday.

From Barron's ● Nov. 3, 2026

Concealed beneath the blankets, however, was a heavy-duty chain fitted with padlocks.

From BBC ● Oct. 31, 2026

That’s what marathon world-record-setters wear, $300 models with a carbon-fiber plate fitted inside a sole made with energy-returning foam.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 29, 2026

Bel, who graduated from Springfield High in May, had been fitted with an ankle monitor just before his freshman year of college.

From Slate ● Oct. 26, 2026

The bodice was a deep-green silk embroidered with gold thread, and fitted snugly around her waist.

From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood

Far from fitting the outdated stereotype of Neanderthals as simple, brutal creatures, Shanidar A provides rare physical evidence of a society capable of both deadly violence and sustained compassion.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 31, 2026

A handful of top long-distance athletes work at running stores, fitting people who have no idea how fast they are; ‘That’s 4:30 a mile!’

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026

It is fitting, then, that the changing footballing landscape might be offering him another sequel, this time in his tactical approach.

From BBC ● Oct. 29, 2026

How fitting that little black ball is rolling into this year’s award season as a juggernaut.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 27, 2026

Mrs. Trepid carried it to the fitting room, and once she had the dress on and zipped, she turned to look in the mirror.

From "Ruby Holler" by Sharon Creech

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