confer
Americanverb (used without object)
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confers,
present (3rd person singular)
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conferred,
past participle, past
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conferring
present participle
verb (used with object)
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confers,
present (3rd person singular)
-
conferred,
past participle, past
-
conferring
present participle
-
to bestow upon as a gift, favor, honor, etc..
to confer a degree on a graduate.
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Obsolete. to compare.
verb
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(tr; foll by on or upon) to grant or bestow (an honour, gift, etc)
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(intr) to hold or take part in a conference or consult together
-
(tr) an obsolete word for compare
Synonym Usage
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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confermentnoun
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conferrernoun
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reconferverb
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preconferverb (used without object)
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conferrableadjective
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nonconferrableadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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confersimple
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conferssimple
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have conferredperfect
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has conferredperfect
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am conferringprogressive
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are conferringprogressive
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is conferringprogressive
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have been conferringperfect progressive
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has been conferringperfect progressive
Past
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conferredsimple
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had conferredperfect
-
was conferringprogressive
-
were conferringprogressive
-
had been conferringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of confer
First recorded in 1400–50 for earlier sense “to summon”; 1520–30 for current senses; late Middle English conferen, from Latin conferre “to bring together, compare, consult with,” equivalent to con- “with, together, completely” ( see con-) + ferre “to carry, bear” ( see bear 1)
Explanation
If you gab, chat, and talk it up with someone, you have conversation, but if you're looking for input from each other as you talk, you confer, or consult, together. They had a family meeting to confer about a schedule for sharing the new laptop. Many uses of the verb confer involve consulting with another person or as a group. Confer has a second use meaning "bestow," which means to award or hand over something. You can confer a medal on a winner or hero, or you can confer status through a promotion or assignment. Each year the teacher would confer the special honor of summer hamster-sitter on one responsible student.
Vocabulary lists containing confer
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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"The Great Gatsby," Chapter 1 Vocabulary
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Refugee
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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:
But in a city where wealth and power can confer its own kind of celebrity status, the names announced Thursday weren’t among those appearing in boldface in society columns.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026
Different types of workouts also confer their own benefits when it comes to health and weight maintenance.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 22, 2026
That’s why older first-time parents should confer with their own parents to tackle the “who’s going to take care of you?” question.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 1, 2026
The consequence is to confer substantially greater discretion on the executive.
From Slate ● Jun. 26, 2026
At the front of the car Mrs. Scatcherd stands up, bends down to confer with Mr. Curran, and stands up again.
From "Orphan Train" by Christina Baker Kline
Local allegiance never confers any opportunity to obtain citizenship, which natural allegiance does.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 1, 2026
At the heart of the case is the interpretation of the Fourteenth Amendment’s Citizenship Clause, which confers citizenship on anyone “born … in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof.”
From Barron's ● Jun. 30, 2026
Consequently, the clause confers on Congress especially broad authority over state electoral systems and makes judicial second-guessing of legislation designed to ensure equal representation for all particularly improper.
From Slate ● Jun. 3, 2026
And while it confers some key benefits — particularly a 2% reward on Costco purchases, delivered annually in the form of a store certificate — it isn’t necessarily a VIP-type program.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 13, 2026
Let each one leave his children every good thing this realm confers upon him!
From "The Odyssey" by Homer
He and Flores sat quietly, wearing headphones for translation while their attorneys conferred with the judge.
From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026
It’s clear they also wanted to maintain the impunity conferred by America’s superpower status.
From Salon ● Jul. 19, 2026
Douglass’s “Narrative” was his claim to the rights conferred, not upon a craftsman, but upon a human being.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 3, 2026
The IRS was told to remedy this back in 2017, and conferred it with the SSA, but it determined that coming up with a new data-sharing plan wouldn’t be “useful.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 13, 2026
“I don’t know,” I said and pointed to the hall where Miss Violet conferred with the other teachers who had come to school.
From "Bless Me, Ultima" by Rudolfo Anaya
This status brought “a safety premium,” conferring lower everyday borrowing costs for the U.S. and virtually unlimited financing capacity.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 20, 2026
Downing Street published a list of the nominations, external and said the King "has been graciously pleased to signify his intention of conferring peerages".
From BBC ● Jul. 16, 2026
A firefighting aircraft was able to fly over the fire Monday and was conferring with firefighters on the ground to decide whether it would be possible to use more aircraft, Theune said.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 18, 2026
Other newfangled ways of accessing private markets have also crept onto investors’ radar in recent years, including digital stock tokens designed to mirror a company’s share-price performance without conferring actual ownership rights.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 16, 2026
During this time, the judges are conferring in another room, deciding on the winning queens.
From "The Queen of Water" by Laura Resau
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.
