Synonyms

attend

American

[uh-tend] / əˈtɛnd /

verb (used with object)

to be present at.

to attend a lecture; to attend church.
to go with as a concomitant or result; accompany.

Fever may attend a cold. Success attended her hard work.
to take care of; minister to; devote one's services to.

The nurse attended the patient daily.
to wait upon; accompany as a companion or servant.

The retainers attended their lord.
to take charge of; watch over; look after; tend; guard.

to attend one's health.
to listen to; give heed to.
Archaic. to wait for; expect.

verb (used without object)

to take care or charge.

to attend to a sick person.
to apply oneself.

to attend to one's work.
to pay attention; listen or watch attentively; direct one's thought; pay heed.

to attend to a speaker.
to be present.

She is a member but does not attend regularly.
to be present and ready to give service; wait (usually followed by on orupon ).

to attend upon the Queen.
to follow; be consequent (usually followed by on orupon ).
Obsolete. to wait.

attend British

/ əˈtɛnd /

verb

to be present at (an event, meeting, etc)
to give care; minister
to pay attention; listen
(tr; often passive) to accompany or follow

a high temperature attended by a severe cough
(intr; foll by on or upon) to follow as a consequence (of)
to devote one's time; apply oneself

to attend to the garden
(tr) to escort or accompany
(intr; foll by on or upon) to wait (on); serve; provide for the needs (of)

to attend on a guest
archaic (tr) to wait for; expect
obsolete (intr) to delay

"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

Synonym Usage

See accompany.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

Inflected Forms

Participles

Conjugated Forms

Present

Past

Future

Etymology

Origin of attend

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English atenden, from Anglo-French, Old French atendre, from Latin attendere “to bend to, notice,” from at- at- + tendere “to stretch, extend, proceed”; cf. tend ¹

Explanation

The verb attend means to be present, to listen, or give care or attention to. You can attend your family reunion, attend to a project you've been ignoring, or attend to your teacher's voice. When you use attend as "pay attention" or "take care of," it's followed by "to." When you use attend as in "attend a party," you don't. If you attend a political rally, you'll want to attend to what the politicians have to say. When you take attendance, you are checking which students have chosen to attend class, i.e. who is in attendance.

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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.

Polish President Nawrocki is set to attend a Nato summit with leaders of other members of the defensive alliance in Turkey next week.

From BBC • Jul. 3, 2026

Around 70,000 people were expected to attend, according to the Catholic Church in Vietnam, many arriving days early to watch the ceremony on big screens outside the church.

From Barron's • Jul. 2, 2026

Selines initially made a deal with her parents to attend the City College of New York while she continued to pursue music.

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 1, 2026

Probably one of the biggest changes coming for undergraduate students is the way loans are calculated for students who attend college part time.

From MarketWatch • Jul. 1, 2026

It was the greatest honor of his life that he was permitted to attend, though he did not know enough to know it.

From "Impossible Creatures" by Katherine Rundell

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023