attach
Americanverb (used with object)
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to fasten or affix; join; connect.
to attach a photograph to an application with a staple.
- Antonyms:
- detach
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to join in action or function; make part of.
to attach oneself to a group.
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Military. to place on temporary duty with or in assistance to a military unit.
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to include as a quality or condition of something.
One proviso is attached to this legacy.
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to assign or attribute.
to attach significance to a gesture.
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to bind by ties of affection or regard.
You always attach yourself to people who end up hurting you.
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Law. to take (persons or property) by legal authority.
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Obsolete. to lay hold of; seize.
verb (used without object)
verb
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to join, fasten, or connect
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(reflexive or passive) to become associated with or join, as in a business or other venture
he attached himself to the expedition
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to be inherent (in) or connected (with)
responsibility attaches to the job
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to attribute or ascribe
to attach importance to an event
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to include or append, esp as a condition
a proviso is attached to the contract
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(usually passive) military to place on temporary duty with another unit
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(usually passive) to put (a member of an organization) to work in a different unit or agency, either with an expectation of reverting to, or while retaining some part of, the original working arrangement
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to appoint officially
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law to arrest or take (a person, property, etc) with lawful authority
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obsolete to seize
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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attachsimple
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attachessimple
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have attachedperfect
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has attachedperfect
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am attachingprogressive
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are attachingprogressive
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is attachingprogressive
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have been attachingperfect progressive
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has been attachingperfect progressive
Past
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attachedsimple
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had attachedperfect
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was attachingprogressive
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were attachingprogressive
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had been attachingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of attach
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English atachen, from Anglo-French atacher “to seize,” Old French atachier “to fasten,” alteration of estachier “to fasten with or to a stake,” from estach(e), from Frankish stakka “stake”; cf. stake 1
Explanation
Use the verb attach when you need to join things together, like a stamp that you attach to a letter. When you attach something, you join it or tie it to something else. The word can be used to show physically joining things, like a printer that you attach to your computer, or to show a strong personal connection. For example, you can attach yourself to a political cause or to a group of friends.
Vocabulary lists containing attach
"Hitching a Ride"
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"The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet," Vocabulary from Act 5
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"Growing Together" and "When I Grow Up"
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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:
After nitration occurs, HGF can no longer attach effectively to the receptor.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 24, 2026
Under the California Vehicle Code, it is illegal for anyone on an e-bike, bicycle, motorcycle or roller skates to attach themselves to another vehicle on a road.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 18, 2026
He added that they had been able to give him water and attach him to an intravenous drip.
From BBC ● Jul. 2, 2026
Financial-advice books inevitably attach warning labels to protect the authors should their suggestions blow up.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 1, 2026
They left no equipment that might attach the steps to the trailer.
From "Zeitoun" by Dave Eggers
The company he founded, ubloquity, attaches a QR code or radio frequency technology to a product.
From BBC ● Jul. 4, 2026
Roberts described the injury as “discomfort” at the back of Ohtani’s knee, around where the hamstring attaches.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 12, 2026
“It is not coincidental that Poland, which shares a border with Russia and attaches high value to its membership in NATO, has been one of the largest gold buyers,” Eichengreen says.
From Barron's ● Jun. 5, 2026
Increasingly a sinister hue attaches to Beijing’s preference for “open weight” models.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 19, 2026
I feel a slight pulling on the needles as she attaches the wires.
From "A Mango-Shaped Space" by Wendy Mass
The answer, discovered in 1975 by Dr. Snyder and one of his graduate students, Candace Pert, was a cellular site—a receptor—to which dopamine attached.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
They fear that any strings attached to the public money will make many private schools balk at taking it.
From Salon ● Jul. 27, 2026
The size of a tablet computer and attached to drones, the military-grade jammers can hinder Russian air defence systems from tracking and targeting such weapons in-flight, Downing Street said.
From Barron's ● Jul. 26, 2026
The mobile number was then put through police intelligence databases, which revealed a single piece of intelligence dating back to 2018, linked to that number, but with no name attached.
From BBC ● Jul. 23, 2026
There was a rolling ladder attached to the bookshelf, and Danny wanted to ask if he could slide around on it the way Belle did in Beauty and the Beast.
From "The Way to Rio Luna" by Zoraida Cordova
For most of his career, he found his relevance by attaching himself to those who were.
From Slate ● Jul. 14, 2026
The research team noticed that the section of tau responsible for attaching to microtubules closely resembles a-beta in both size and structure.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 19, 2026
“The next phase is about execution, pricing power and cash flow, not just attaching AI to a slide deck and hoping the stock market applauds.”
From Barron's ● Jun. 4, 2026
The Oakland Police Department said StarChase’s trackers had a high failure rate of attaching to vehicles, according to reporting from the Oaklandside.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 7, 2026
Besides the countersunk nozzle, Mr. Caton showed off his new design for attaching the fins to the casement.
From "October Sky" by Homer Hickam
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.
