Showing results for "belonging"

• present participle of belong.

belonging

American  

[bih-lawng-ing, -long-] / bɪˈlɔŋ ɪŋ, -ˈlɒŋ- /

noun

belongings plural

1. something that belongs.

2. belongings, possessions; goods; personal effects.

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belonging British  

/ bɪˈlɒŋɪŋ /

noun

1. secure relationship; affinity (esp in the phrase a sense of belonging )

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• unbelonging
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• belongings
  plural

Etymology

Origin of belonging

First recorded in 1595–1605; belong + -ing ¹

Explanation

Belonging is a sense of fitting in or feeling like you are an important member of a group. A really close family gives each of its members a strong sense of belonging. When you belong, you are an official part of a group ("She belongs to the French club") or you're compatible with certain people or suited to a specific place ("I just belong in nature"). A feeling of belonging describes this sense of truly fitting or meshing, especially with friends, family members, or other sympathetic folks.

Example Sentences

Preserved within the cave were fossils belonging to 12 bird species and four frog species, offering a rare snapshot of a world that existed hundreds of thousands of years before humans reached the islands.

From Science Daily • Jun. 23, 2026

Flowers also pleaded guilty of attempting to hack computer systems belonging to California-based Sutter Health and another US company, SSM Healthcare Corporation.

From BBC • Jun. 22, 2026

They’re survival habits, so they are brilliant and laudable ways that you learned to secure safety, belonging, and worth outside of yourself when that felt like the only option.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 15, 2026

Last month, 40 satellites—all but one belonging to SpaceX—burned up re-entering the atmosphere, according to the Aerospace Corporation, a nonprofit research-and-development organization.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 11, 2026

It was a laptop belonging to an accountant from Edinburgh sitting in 4B who had the latest firewall installed.

From "City Spies" by James Ponti