ratify
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to confirm by expressing consent, approval, or formal sanction.
to ratify a constitutional amendment.
- Synonyms:
- approve, corroborate
- Antonyms:
- disapprove, veto
-
to confirm (something done or arranged by an agent or by representatives) by such action.
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
ratifysimple
-
ratifiessimple
-
have ratifiedperfect
-
has ratifiedperfect
-
am ratifyingprogressive
-
are ratifyingprogressive
-
is ratifyingprogressive
-
have been ratifyingperfect progressive
-
has been ratifyingperfect progressive
Past
-
ratifiedsimple
-
had ratifiedperfect
-
was ratifyingprogressive
-
were ratifyingprogressive
-
had been ratifyingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of ratify
First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English ratifien, from Middle French ratifier, from Medieval Latin ratificāre, equivalent to Latin rat(us) “calculated” ( see rate 1) + -ificāre -ify
Explanation
To ratify a treaty or contract is to officially approve it by signing or voting for it. You and your brothers and sisters might devise a plan for a family vacation to Disney World, but it would need to be ratified by your parents. You are most likely to hear the word ratify when talking about laws. In the U.S., Congress writes bills, but they need to be ratified before they become law. An amendment to the U.S. Constitution must be ratified by three-fourths of the states, either passed by the state legislatures or by state conventions.
Vocabulary lists containing ratify
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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American History I
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The Tragedy of Macbeth
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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:
It’s rare that candidates are nominated through conventions, which are often opportunities for endless speeches—much like the quadrennial political conventions that national parties hold to ratify their nominees.
From Slate ● Jul. 24, 2026
Samsung Electronics' labour union is expected to announce Wednesday whether chip workers voted to ratify a wage deal that would deliver massive AI-linked bonuses and helped avert a major strike.
From Barron's ● May 26, 2026
"So I think we are coming to good solutions that we are going to ratify hopefully today, in order to evolve, because it's only three races in."
From BBC ● Apr. 20, 2026
The Board of Education also must ratify tentative agreements.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 14, 2026
His attack was on those who wrote history to ratify and glorify the present, particularly present political arrangements.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
The dollar “probably can keep selling off because it kind of ratifies the current narrative,” said Brent Donnelly, president of Spectra Markets.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 27, 2026
“What Mike White does is so insanely strong that when he ratifies an actor — or gives someone their moment — it’s just so deeply impressive,” Perkins says.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 21, 2025
TD Cowen analyst Jaret Seiberg said in a note the Fed "likely expects both the banks and the merchants to challenge any final...rule even if that final proposal simply ratifies the status quo."
From Reuters ● Oct. 25, 2023
Assuming the parliament ratifies Finland's accession beforehand, the government in Helsinki still has to secure the support of Hungary.
From BBC ● Mar. 17, 2023
New Hampshire lays claim to Vermont, 151–153; riots in, 183; hesitates to ratify the Constitution, 331; ratifies it, 338.
From The Critical Period of American History by Fiske, John
The treaty seeks to ban all nuclear explosion tests on Earth, but several "nuclear-capable" states have not ratified it yet.
From BBC ● Jul. 15, 2026
Both Dobbs and Barbara involve the same amendment, ratified by the same actors.
From Salon ● Jul. 6, 2026
The lawmakers who wrote and ratified the equal protection clause also enacted laws that took race into account to protect people of color from discrimination.
From Slate ● Jun. 22, 2026
It was ratified to the Constitution that December.
From Barron's ● Jun. 19, 2026
Tennessee had ratified the Nineteenth Amendment, which would now become part of the US Constitution.
From "Votes for Women!" by Winifred Conkling
The two largest proxy-advisory firms recommended that investment-fund clients vote against ratifying BlackRock’s executive comp packages, citing transparency concerns over how performance incentives are determined and the complexity of the growing carried interest program.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 20, 2026
When ratifying the amendment in 1868, however, Congress explicitly recognized that it would also apply to the American-born offspring of immigrants.
From Slate ● Apr. 1, 2026
It has, however, raised questions about trade deals Washington has agreed since Trump's "Liberation Day" bombshell in April, with the European Union demanding clarity on the issue before ratifying its agreement.
From Barron's ● Feb. 24, 2026
Yet ratifying the agreement has proven difficult because roughly half of the guides don’t want to unionize.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 12, 2025
Edmund Randolph made it abundantly clear at the Virginia ratifying convention just what “domestic interests” Mason had in mind.
From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis
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.
