appoint
Americanverb (used with object)
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appoints,
present (3rd person singular)
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appointed,
past participle, past
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appointing
present participle
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to name or assign to a position, an office, or the like; designate.
to appoint a new treasurer; to appoint a judge to the bench.
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to determine by authority or agreement; fix; set.
to appoint a time for the meeting.
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Law. to designate (a person) to take the benefit of an estate created by a deed or will.
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to provide with what is necessary; equip; furnish.
They appointed the house with all the latest devices.
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Archaic. to order or establish by decree or command; ordain; constitute.
laws appointed by God.
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Obsolete. to point at by way of censure.
verb (used without object)
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appoints,
present (3rd person singular)
-
appointed,
past participle, past
-
appointing
present participle
verb
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(also intr) to assign officially, as for a position, responsibility, etc
he was appointed manager
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to establish by agreement or decree; fix
a time was appointed for the duel
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to prescribe or ordain
laws appointed by tribunal
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property law to nominate (a person), under a power granted in a deed or will, to take an interest in property
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to equip with necessary or usual features; furnish
a well-appointed hotel
Synonym Usage
See furnish.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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appointernoun
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misappointverb (used with object)
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reappointverb (used with object)
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appointableadjective
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unappointableadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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appointsimple
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appointssimple
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have appointedperfect
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has appointedperfect
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am appointingprogressive
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are appointingprogressive
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is appointingprogressive
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have been appointingperfect progressive
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has been appointingperfect progressive
Past
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appointedsimple
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had appointedperfect
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was appointingprogressive
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were appointingprogressive
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had been appointingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of appoint
1325–75; Middle English apointen, from Middle French apointer, equivalent to a- a- 5 + pointer “to point ”
Explanation
The President can appoint someone as ambassador to another county; that means to give them the job or recommend them for it. It must be nice to be appointed. Usually, people who want a job have to send in applications, do interviews, and jump through lots of hoops. Appointing is different: someone with the power to appoint can usually just give you the job. In some cases, appointing isn't a sure thing and means something closer to "recommending" — but it still beats filling out all those applications. It takes power to appoint people, which is why world leaders are often the ones appointing.
Vocabulary lists containing appoint
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Vocabulary from The Articles of Confederation
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Vocabulary from the Constitution of the United States
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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 was far from ideal - and it served as a reminder for Iraola that he must appoint a vice-captain soon, with the vacancy open after Andy Robertson's departure.
From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026
As a Plan B, you could also ask your friend to appoint a co-executor or a secondary executor.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 28, 2026
Amy denied this in a recent court filing, part of an effort to convince a judge to appoint a guardian for her stepmom.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 25, 2026
At the same time, the federal judge in L.A. who presides over the agreement appears poised to appoint a powerful new enforcer to uphold it.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026
The Roman emperor Caligula allegedly planned to appoint his favourite horse, Incitatus, to the consulship.
From "Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind" by Yuval Noah Harari
Bass sits on LAHSA’s 10-member board and appoints four of its members.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2026
Coombs said investors are currently giving Burnham the benefit of the doubt as they await clarity on who he appoints to his top team, especially who he names as chancellor.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 24, 2026
“Who makes decisions about discipline and who appoints the decision-makers,” she said, are critical to making the system “fair and effective.”
From Salon ● Jun. 16, 2026
Instead, the president appoints a minister from anywhere in the country with powers similar to a state governor.
From BBC ● Apr. 3, 2026
Then Mittelstaedt makes them practise skirmishing, and as a favour appoints Kantorek squad leader.
From "All Quiet on the Western Front: A Novel" by Erich Maria Remarque
Glamorous actress Rouzaina Lazkani, 36, known for television dramas, was catapulted into politics when she was among the 70 lawmakers appointed by Sharaa under the country's transitional constitutional arrangements.
From Barron's ● Aug. 7, 2026
With 15 of the women appointed by President Ahmed al-Sharaa, the lineup likely reflects the new authorities' keenness to demonstrate inclusivity following criticism that women and minorities have been under-represented in the country's post-war transition.
From Barron's ● Aug. 7, 2026
He demanded the company begin submitting monthly reports and said a special master would be appointed to help manage the antitrust case and monitor Nexstar for compliance.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026
When at the age of 37 he was appointed as a professor at the University of Cambridge, the prestigious institution said that he would help “address the underrepresentation of people from socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026
Blacks were appointed to fill two vacancies on the Housing Authority board.
From "The Best of Enemies" by Osha Gray Davidson
Lula said that with elections looming, he was not receiving new ambassadors from any country, and blamed Washington for lagging in appointing someone.
From Barron's ● Aug. 5, 2026
The judge would then review his medical and psychological evidence with a view to appointing an investigator.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 5, 2026
In other instances, they were daughters, state officials, or even the spouses of the governors doing the appointing.
From Slate ● Jul. 24, 2026
He is expected to start appointing his senior ministers once inside No 10.
From BBC ● Jul. 19, 2026
Time was so short, the Executive Committee began planning exhibits and appointing world’s fair commissioners to secure them.
From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson
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.
