adapt
Americanverb (used with object)
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adapts,
present (3rd person singular)
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adapted,
past participle, past
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adapting
present participle
verb (used without object)
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adapts,
present (3rd person singular)
-
adapted,
past participle, past
-
adapting
present participle
verb
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(often foll by to) to adjust (someone or something, esp oneself) to different conditions, a new environment, etc
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(tr) to fit, change, or modify to suit a new or different purpose
to adapt a play for use in schools
Synonym Usage
See adjust.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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adaptabilitynoun
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adaptednessnoun
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misadaptverb
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readaptverb (used with object)
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adaptableadjective
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adaptiveadjective
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nonadaptingadjective
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unadaptedadjective
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well-adaptedadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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adaptsimple
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adaptssimple
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have adaptedperfect
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has adaptedperfect
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am adaptingprogressive
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are adaptingprogressive
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is adaptingprogressive
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have been adaptingperfect progressive
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has been adaptingperfect progressive
Past
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adaptedsimple
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had adaptedperfect
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was adaptingprogressive
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were adaptingprogressive
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had been adaptingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of adapt
First recorded in 1605–15; from Latin adaptāre “to fit, adjust,” perhaps via French adapter; see ad-, apt
Explanation
Say you move to a country where everyone cooks with lots of hot peppers. At first the food scalds your tongue, but over time you adapt — you change in a way that allows you to deal with the new circumstances. Adapt comes from the ancient word ap, which means "take" or "grasp." Ap is even older than Latin — it comes from a lost language that was spoken by the common ancestors of modern-day Indians and Europeans and has since been reconstructed by linguists, who named it the Proto-Indo-European language, or PIE. So what does adapt have to do with grasp? If you adapt to, say, a new country, it's as though you're grabbing hold of its strange, slippery customs.
Vocabulary lists containing adapt
The SAT: Language of the Test, List 2
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List 4
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The New SAT: The Language of the Test
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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:
But Harry accused William of not doing enough to help Meghan adapt to life in the royal family.
From Barron's ● Aug. 21, 2026
All they feel they can do is try to adapt.
From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2026
That way, you’d know those expenses were covered and you’d be able to adapt the rest of your spending around that.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 19, 2026
The defender has never played in the Premier League before and, like all of Newcastle's six arrivals, he will need time to adapt to the intensity and physicality of the top-flight.
From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026
The Soviet women who fought in uniform in the Great Patriotic War had to struggle to adapt to clothes made for men.
From "A Thousand Sisters" by Elizabeth Wein
Chelsea, Mudryk and his representatives have entered an initial two-week assessment period to evaluate how he adapts to life back in an elite football environment.
From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026
"This knowledge can help to better understand and recognize mental health problems in mothers. It is important that we understand how the brain adapts to motherhood."
From Science Daily ● Jul. 11, 2026
The Battle of the Atlantic showed that victory often goes to the side that adapts faster.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 7, 2026
This season adapts Anne Rice’s novel of the same name, which is told from the perspective of Lestat, played by Reid, and transforms him into a touring musician.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 20, 2026
A child adapts rapidly, or not at all — and I had taken to the Great Place as though I had been raised there.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
New Keynesians like Mankiw adapted the Keynesian model to include this expectations phenomenon, while maintaining that prices and wages in the real world adjust slowly.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026
By examining the placement of human remains and burial objects, the researchers reconstructed how generations of people repeatedly adapted the chamber for new burials.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 19, 2026
And 14 of those 21 goals came after the turn of the year, suggesting he had adapted to the new league.
From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026
Unlike the British, from whom the America’s founders adapted impeachment, the Framers wrote a definition of impeachable conduct into the Constitution—“treason, bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.”
From Slate ● Aug. 17, 2026
He also imagined that the Moon had its inhabitants, well adapted to the inclemencies of the local environment.
From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan
This will be a fascinating game because Liverpool are still adapting to life under Andoni Iraola and have struggled defensively in pre-season.
From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2026
But some Arctic and sub-Arctic operators are betting the tech can still pay off—even if it means adapting their businesses.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026
"I actually think that what we are seeing is because our bodies are not adapting," Dr Bierwirth said.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 15, 2026
What is the biggest difference or challenge you’ve noticed when adapting to solo performances?
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026
“They’re modern and adapting and moving forward. It’s not about superficial appearances or stereotypes, and it’s not about living in the past —it’s about honoring that past by building a future. . . .”
From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith
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.
