connect

American  

[kuh-nekt] / kəˈnɛkt /

verb (used with object)

1. to join, link, or fasten together; unite or bind.

   to connect the two cities by a bridge; Communication satellites connect the local stations into a network.

   Antonyms:

   sunder, divide

2. to establish communication between; put in communication.

   Operator, will you please connect me with Mr. Jones?

3. to have as an accompanying or associated feature.

   pleasures connected with music.

4. to cause to be associated, as in a personal or business relationship.

   to connect oneself with a group of like-minded persons; Our bank is connected with major foreign banks.

   Antonyms:

   dissociate

5. to associate mentally or emotionally.

   She connects all telegrams with bad news.

6. to link to an electrical or communications system; hook up.

   to connect a telephone.

---

verb (used without object)

1. to become connected; join or unite.

   These two parts connect at the sides.

2. (of trains, buses, etc.) to run so as to make connections (often followed bywith ).

   This bus connects with a northbound bus.

3. Informal. to have or establish successful communication; make contact.

   I connected with two new clients today.

4. Informal. to relate to or be in harmony with another person, one's work, etc..

   We knew each other well but never connected.

5. Slang. (of a drug dealer or user) to make direct contact for the illegal sale or purchase of drugs, as narcotics.

6. Sports. to hit successfully or solidly.

   The batter connected for a home run. The boxer connected with a right.

adjective

1. of or relating to a connection or connections.

   connect charges for a new cable television channel.

connect British  

/ kəˈnɛkt /

verb

1. to link or be linked together; join; fasten

2. (tr) to relate or associate

   I connect him with my childhood

3. (tr) to establish telephone communications with or between

4. (intr) to be meaningful or meaningfully related

5. (intr) (of two public vehicles, such as trains or buses) to have the arrival of one timed to occur just before the departure of the other, for the convenient transfer of passengers

6. informal (intr) to hit, punch, kick, etc, solidly

7. informal (intr) to be successful

8. slang (intr) to find a source of drugs, esp illegal drugs

---

Usage

What are other ways to say connect?

To connect is to link or fasten together, as two cities by a bridge. How is connect different from join and unite? Find out on Thesaurus.com.

Other Word Forms

• connectability noun
• connectable adjective
• connectibility noun
• connectible adjective
• connector noun
• misconnect verb
• reconnect verb (used with object)
• subconnect verb

Etymology

Origin of connect

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Latin connectere, equivalent to con- “with, together” + nectere “to tie”; con-, nexus

Example Sentences

He also looks for trends and stories that connect the dots, which are collected beneath subheads — AI, water, housing, education and the like.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 5, 2026

However, some people have managed to connect using satellite internet systems such as Starlink and other methods, though it comes at a high cost.

From BBC • Apr. 3, 2026

“SOFI is in a unique position to connect infrastructure across traditional finance and digital assets as one of the first movers into the space among federally regulated banks,” Switzer wrote.

From Barron's • Apr. 3, 2026

In theory, transportation systems could connect buildings—and even clusters of buildings—moving people sideways and up-and-down through large complexes, campuses or dense urban districts.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 2, 2026

“Can’t we just connect them to our equipment?”

From "Glitch" by Laura Martin

Related Words

• associate
• attach
• hook up
• join
• relate