participate
Americanverb (used without object)
verb (used with object)
verb
Synonym Usage
See share 1.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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participativeadjective
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participantadjective
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participationnoun
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unparticipatedadjective
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unparticipativeadjective
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participatornoun
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participatinglyadverb
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participatoryadjective
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unparticipatingadjective
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participativelyadverb
Conjugated Forms
Present
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have participatedperfect
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has participatedperfect 3rd person singular
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have been participatingperfect progressive
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are participatingprogressive
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has been participatingperfect progressive 3rd person singular
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is participatingprogressive 3rd person singular
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am participatingprogressive 1st person singular
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participatingparticiple
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participatessingular 3rd person
Past
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had participatedperfect
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participatedparticiple
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was participatingprogressive singular
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had been participatingperfect progressive
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were participatingprogressive plural
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participatedsimple
Future
Etymology
Origin of participate
First recorded in 1525–35; from Latin participātus “shared,” past participle of participāre “to share,” equivalent to particip- (stem of particeps ) “taking part, partner” ( see participle) + -āre, verb suffix
Explanation
If you take part in an activity or organization, you participate in it. For example, you participate in a conversation by listening to and talking with others, or you participate in a sport by joining a team and taking part in practices and games. You can use the verb participate to mean "be involved in" or "share in." Sometimes it is easy to figure out who participates in something — the runners in a race, the people waiting their turn to audition for a part in a play. Sometimes it isn't so obvious. If two students cause trouble but the teacher punishes the whole class, it might be that in not stopping the troublemakers, she views everyone as having participated — just being there means they were involved.
Vocabulary lists containing participate
On Your Mark, Get Set, Commence Your Life!
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Declaration of the Rights of Man (1789)
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A Résumé of Active Words
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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.
A USC spokeswoman declined an interview request on Mark’s behalf, citing “a longstanding policy that freshmen do not participate in interviews until they have meaningfully contributed in a game.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 6, 2026
The team "took off this evening for Mexico to participate in the World Cup after" training in Turkey, it said.
From Barron's • Jun. 6, 2026
SpaceX also posted a copy of its roadshow slide deck, which executives can be expected to use over the coming days to persuade investors to participate in its IPO.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 4, 2026
Coroner Pegg said the state had a "duty to carry out a public investigation... in which Henry's family can fully participate", which they had not been able to do during the trial.
From BBC • Jun. 4, 2026
Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton, and Martin Luther King III were among those who traveled hundreds of miles to participate in what was heralded as “the beginnings of a new civil rights movement.”
From "The New Jim Crow" by Michelle Alexander
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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.