add

[ ad ]

/ æd /

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verb (used with object)

to unite or join so as to increase the number, quantity, size, or importance: to add two cups of sugar; to add a postscript to her letter; to add insult to injury.

to find the sum of (often followed by up): Add this column of figures. Add up the grocery bills.

to say or write further.

to include (usually followed by in): Don't forget to add in the tip.

verb (used without object)

to perform the arithmetic operation of addition: children learning to add and subtract.

to be or serve as an addition (usually followed by to): His illness added to the family's troubles.

noun

Journalism. copy added to a completed story.

Verb Phrases

add up to, to signify; indicate: The evidence adds up to a case of murder.

OTHER WORDS FOR add

1 affix, append, attach, adjoin.

2 total, sum.

See synonyms for add on Thesaurus.com

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Idioms about add

add up,

to make the desired, expected, or correct total: These figures don't add up right.
to seem reasonable or consistent; be in harmony or accord: Some aspects of the story didn't add up.

Origin of add

1325–75; Middle English adden<Latin addere, equivalent to ad-ad- + -dere to put (combining form; see do¹)

OTHER WORDS FROM add

add·a·ble, add·i·ble, adjectiveadd·ed·ly, adverbmis·add, verbre·add, verb (used with object)

un·add·a·ble, adjectiveun·add·ed, adjectiveun·add·i·ble, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH add

1. ad, add , odd2. addable , edible3. adds , ads, adz

Other definitions for add (2 of 2)

ADD

[ ey-dee-dee ]

/ ˈeɪˈdiˈdi /

abbreviation, noun

attention deficit disorder: the inattentive subtype of ADHD, usually marked by distractibility and difficulties with executive function.

Origin of ADD

First recorded in 1975–80

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use add in a sentence

Our bigger business and value add is to bring clinicians in from outside the region, maybe across state lines.
A depleted workforce and no end in sight: An inside look at America’s ailing health care industry|Erika Fry|December 8, 2020|Fortune
Before anti-vaxxers, there were anti-fluoriders: a group who spread fear about the anti-tooth decay agent added to drinking water.
Anti-Fluoriders Are The OG Anti-Vaxxers|Michael Schulson|July 27, 2016|DAILY BEAST
Added to drinking water at concentrations of around one part per million, fluoride ions stick to dental plaque.
Anti-Fluoriders Are The OG Anti-Vaxxers|Michael Schulson|July 27, 2016|DAILY BEAST
He added: “People say he deserves his day in court… Do we have enough time?”
Bill Maher: Hundreds of Millions of Muslims Support Attack on ‘Charlie Hebdo’|Lloyd Grove|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST

The FBI has also been searching its records for any information that could assist the French investigation, a spokesperson added.
U.S. Spies See Al Qaeda Fingerprints on Paris Massacre|Shane Harris, Nancy A. Youssef|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
“Lockheed Martin has a long history of misrepresenting facts,” Wheeler added.
Pentagon Misfires in Stealth Jet Scandal|Dave Majumdar|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
A few small rocks of some soft stone may be added, and in between these the Ferns are planted.
How to Know the Ferns|S. Leonard Bastin
In 1763 the chapel was enlarged, and at the same time a little more land was added to the graveyard.
Showell's Dictionary of Birmingham|Thomas T. Harman and Walter Showell
The America that they annexed to Europe was merely a new domain added to a world already old.
The Unsolved Riddle of Social Justice|Stephen Leacock
Ten or twelve added years had slipped by, and it did not seem human that she should continue to feel bitterly toward me.
The Boarded-Up House|Augusta Huiell Seaman
And now there was added to this devotion an element of indefinable anxiety which made its vigilance unceasing.
Ramona|Helen Hunt Jackson

British Dictionary definitions for add (1 of 2)

add

/ (æd) /

verb

to combine (two or more numbers or quantities) by addition

(tr foll by to) to increase (a number or quantity) by another number or quantity using addition

(tr often foll by to) to join (something) to something else in order to increase the size, quantity, effect, or scope; unite (with)to add insult to injury

(intr foll by to) to have an extra and increased effect (on)her illness added to his worries

(tr) to say or write further

(tr foll by in) to include

noun

informal an instance of adding someone to one's list of contacts on a social networking site, esp MySpaceThanks for the add!

Word Origin for add

C14: from Latin addere, literally: to put to, from ad- to + -dere to put

British Dictionary definitions for add (2 of 2)

ADD

abbreviation for

attention deficit disorder

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

Medical definitions for add (1 of 2)

ADD

abbr.