furnish

American  

[fur-nish] / ˈfɜr nɪʃ /

verb (used with object)

furnishes, present (3rd person singular) furnished, past participle, past furnishing present participle

1. to supply (a house, room, etc.) with necessary furniture, carpets, appliances, etc.

   Synonyms:

   outfit, rig

2. to provide or supply (often followed bywith ).

   The delay furnished me with the time I needed.

   Synonyms:

   outfit, rig

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noun

1. paper pulp and any ingredients added to it prior to its introduction into a papermaking machine.

furnish British  

/ ˈfɜːnɪʃ /

verb

1. to provide (a house, room, etc) with furniture, carpets, etc

2. to equip with what is necessary; fit out

3. to give; supply

   the records furnished the information required

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Synonym Usage

Furnish, appoint, equip all refer to providing something necessary. Furnish emphasizes the idea of providing necessary or customary services or appliances in living quarters: to furnish board; a room meagerly furnished with a bed, desk, and a wooden chair. Appoint, a more formal word now usually used in the past participle appointed, means to furnish completely with all requisites or accessories or in an elegant style: a well-appointed house. Equip means to supply with necessary materials or apparatus for some service, action, or undertaking; it emphasizes preparation: to equip a vessel, a soldier.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• furnisher
  noun

Inflected Forms

Participles

• furnishing
  present
• furnished
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• furnish
  simple
• furnishes
  simple
• have furnished
  perfect
• has furnished
  perfect
• am furnishing
  progressive
• are furnishing
  progressive
• is furnishing
  progressive
• have been furnishing
  perfect progressive
• has been furnishing
  perfect progressive

Past

• furnished
  simple
• had furnished
  perfect
• was furnishing
  progressive
• were furnishing
  progressive
• had been furnishing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will furnish
  simple
• will have furnished
  perfect
• will be furnishing
  progressive
• will have been furnishing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of furnish

1400–50; late Middle English furnisshen, from Old French furniss-, long stem of furnir “to accomplish, furnish,” from Germanic; compare Old High German frumjan “to provide”

Explanation

If you provide something needed, you furnish it. You can furnish an answer to a question in an interview, furnish the snacks at a party, or furnish a room by filling it with couches and chairs. Just as furniture fills a room or a building, to furnish is to fill a need. Another word for furnish is "provide." A furnace furnishes heat (try saying that ten times fast). A job furnishes you with an income. Your parents furnish you with a place to live, furniture included.

Example Sentences

Elton John’s annual viewing party, hosted by John, David Furnish, Neil Patrick Harris and David Burtka, will feature a performance by “Messy” singer and recent Grammy winner Lola Young.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 11, 2026

On Thursday, Furnish told the court that one story, published in December 2010, included the publication of their son Zachary's birth certificate before they had received it.

From BBC • Feb. 6, 2026

ANL strongly denies wrongdoing, with lawyers for the publisher previously telling the court that the claims made by Furnish and Sir Elton are "unsupported by any evidence before the court and utterly baseless".

From BBC • Feb. 5, 2026

The seven claimants suing ANL also include pop icon Elton John and his husband David Furnish, actor Sadie Frost, and two other public figures.

From Barron's • Jan. 22, 2026

Furnish her with a little drum, teach her a song to sing while she beats it, and send her forth.”

From My Dark Companions And Their Strange Stories by Stanley, Henry M. (Henry Morton)

Related Words

• afford
• dispense
• hand over
• provide
• turn over