Synonyms

provide

American

[pruh-vahyd] / prəˈvaɪd /

verb (used with object)

to make available; furnish.

to provide employees with various benefits.

Synonyms:

render, give
to supply or equip.

to provide the army with new fighter planes.
to afford or yield.

Synonyms:

produce
Law. to arrange for or stipulate beforehand, as by a provision or proviso.
Archaic. to prepare or procure beforehand.

verb (used without object)

to take measures with due foresight (usually followed by for oragainst ).
to make arrangements for supplying means of support, money, etc. (usually followed byfor ).

He provided for his children in his will.
to supply means of support (often followed byfor ).

to provide for oneself.

provide British

/ prəˈvaɪd /

verb

to put at the disposal of; furnish or supply
to afford; yield

this meeting provides an opportunity to talk
(intr; often foll by for or against) to take careful precautions (over)

he provided against financial ruin by wise investment
to supply means of support (to), esp financially

he provides for his family
(in statutes, documents, etc) to determine (what is to happen in certain contingencies), esp by including a proviso condition
to confer and induct into ecclesiastical offices
rare to have or get in store

in summer many animals provide their winter food

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Usage

Where does provide come from? For many, the word provide might conjure up tangible objects you can hand over, like food, supplies, goods, or money. Provide may also bring to mind less concrete things that can nevertheless be given or furnished, such as answers or solutions or responses. So, it might surprise you to learn that the root of provide isn’t about the sense of touch—but vision. Provide entered English around 1375–1425. It comes from the Latin prōvidēre, meaning “to foresee, look after, provide for.” The underlying idea of this verb is seeing something at a distance or beforehand, and when you can see something coming, you can make arrangements and prepare supplies for it. We call such arrangements and supplies provisions, a word that is also derived from prōvidēre. The Latin prōvidēre is composed of two parts. The first part is prō-, a widely used prefix based on the preposition prō, meaning “before, in front of.” The second part is vidēre, meaning “to see, look at.”Prō- appears in many words English borrowed from Latin, such as these verbs:

The verb vidēre is the ultimate source of a lot of English words, many of which entered English through French. Some more familiar derivatives include view, video, vision, visual, visit, and vista. Other derivatives are less obvious and even surprising:

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

Inflected Forms

Participles

Conjugated Forms

Present

Past

Future

Etymology

Origin of provide

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English providen, Latin prōvidēre “to foresee, look after, provide for,” equivalent to prō- pro- ¹ + vidēre “to see”; cf. video ( def. )

Explanation

To provide means to give or supply. When you stay in a bed and breakfast, the innkeeper will generally provide you with a meal in the morning as part of the price of the room. The verb provide generally means to make available or even to allow. The Constitution, for example, provides for protected freedom of speech. But you've probably also heard people talking about getting a job to provide for their family — in that case, to provide means to make money to pay for food and bills, or in other words, bring home the bacon.

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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:

provide provides provided providing

The chief market strategist and his team, who provide market tools and research for institutional and retail investors, have made some prescient market calls since the firm’s 2015 start.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 2, 2026

Published in Science Advances, the findings provide a new picture of how prehistoric Europeans interacted, exchanged genes, and maintained populations through thousands of years of dramatic environmental change.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 2, 2026

The couple want every hospital in the UK to provide an alternative way out for grieving mothers, to "make a different route for a parent who has just lost a child".

From BBC ● Nov. 2, 2026

The proposed $2 billion deal would provide investors another way to back America’s race to secure materials critical for munitions, chips and more.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2026

“You not some happy-go-lucky kid anymore. You one grown man. You a father. No can be flighty, go off anywhere you like. You need for provide Clara with stability.”

From "Clairboyance" by Kristiana Kahakauwila

Arista, which provides switches and routers for AI data-center networking, has fallen 18.4% in a month, but is up 29% on the year.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 2, 2026

Often described as the oldest light in the cosmos, this radiation provides a valuable record of conditions that existed shortly after the Big Bang.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 2, 2026

The great room is truly remarkable, with a dramatic 14-foot multislide door that provides direct access to the palm tree-lined courtyard oasis.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 2, 2026

ObamaCare provides two main subsidies: premium tax credits, which lower monthly insurance premiums, and cost-sharing subsidies, which go toward deductibles, copayments and out-of-pocket expenses for eligible low-income enrollees in silver plans.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 1, 2026

But she provides her with grade cards, childhood drawings, school papers.

From "Moon Over Manifest" by Clare Vanderpool

The James Webb Space Telescope also provided another important piece of the puzzle.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 2, 2026

The second is in Ohio, where Nvidia has provided a $105 billion backstop for the monster data center being built for OpenAI by SoftBank’s SB Energy.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 1, 2026

Christos Tzolis: The winger's first start since September after injury and provided a threat from the left.

From BBC ● Nov. 1, 2026

"We are grateful to the American side for the information provided," the FSB was quoted as saying.

From Barron's ● Nov. 1, 2026

Dates inscribed on many of the coins provided the most conclusive proof of the time in which the ship had sailed and had met with disaster.

From "Shipwrecked!" by Martin W. Sandler

Such interactions can cause neutrinos to scatter or be absorbed, providing scientists with a way to detect them.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 2, 2026

Marco has been virtually ever-present this season, providing quiet support for his son whenever needed.

From BBC ● Nov. 2, 2026

“If it does, I’d accept that as a willingness to keep providing more liquidity support for older long-dated bonds.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2026

The technology could help generate driving plans for the many individual segments of a longer journey, providing guidance that Perseverance's AutoNav system can use to navigate the terrain.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 2, 2026

The exposition could help, he realized, providing it did rise to the heights envisioned by Ellsworth.

From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023