appertain
Americanverb (used without object)
verb
Etymology
Origin of appertain
1350–1400; Middle English a ( p ) perte ( y ) nen < Old French apertenir. See ap- 1, pertain
Explanation
Use the verb appertain when you need a formal way to say "officially concern." For example, you could argue, "Those mall rules don't appertain to me and my skateboard." You're most likely to see the word appertain followed by "to," meaning "apply to" or "relate to." Your parents' instructions, for example, appertain to you and your sisters; and passport laws appertain to any citizen who wants to travel to foreign countries. A closely related word is pertain, which has a similar but less formal or official meaning. Both words come from the Latin pertinere, "to relate, have reference to, or be applicable."
Vocabulary lists containing appertain
Julius Caesar
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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.
The Alaskan forest reserves still appertain to the Department of Agriculture.
From Time Magazine Archive
His duties are probably more varied than those that appertain to any other sort of engineering.
From The Business of Mining A brief non-technical exposition of the principles involved in the profitable operation of mines by Hoskin, Arthur J.
To be the concern or proper business or function of; to appertain to.
From Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (2nd 100 Pages) by Webster, Noah
And nobody knew better than Chaucer the respective merits of the Months, and the peculiar qualities and characteristics which appertain to each.
From Mirror of the Months by Patmore, Peter George
Planks, in a political sense, are the several principles which appertain to a party; platform is the collection of such principles.
From The New Gresham Encyclopedia. Vol. 1 Part 1 A to Amide by Various
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.
