constitute
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to compose; form.
mortar constituted of lime and sand.
-
to appoint to an office or function; make or create.
He was constituted treasurer.
-
to establish (laws, an institution, etc.).
- Synonyms:
- commission, institute
-
to give legal form to (an assembly, court, etc.).
-
to create or be tantamount to.
Imports constitute a challenge to local goods.
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Archaic. to set or place.
verb
-
to make up; form; compose
the people who constitute a jury
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to appoint to an office or function
a legally constituted officer
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to set up (a school or other institution) formally; found
-
law to give legal form to (a court, assembly, etc)
-
obsolete law to set up or enact (a law)
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of constitute
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Latin constitūtus, past participle of constituere “to set up, found”; see constituent
Explanation
To constitute is to make up a whole from smaller parts, or "constituents." "What constitutes a family?" means "What makes up a family?" Parents, kids, pets, and other family members constitute most people's idea of a family. The Constitution tells us what our country is all about and supposed to be made of — in other words, what constitutes the United States. This word can deal with the present or the future. The items listed in a recipe constitute what will be in a cake; later, the individual ingredients constitute the cake. Eleven players constitute a football team on the field. We can even say that abstract qualities are constituted. For example, some people think wearing sunglasses constitutes coolness. Since everything in the world is made up of other things, there's a lot of constituting going on.
Vocabulary lists containing constitute
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
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The Mayflower Compact (1620)
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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.
District Judge George Hanks Jr. tossed the suit out, noting that the statement was obvious “rhetorical hyperbole that cannot constitute defamation.”
From Salon • May 16, 2026
Together they constitute Honor’s accidental family, one formed by a shared need for cheap accommodation.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 15, 2026
It said interational students constitute a quarter of all students but pay over 45% of the fee income.
From BBC • May 12, 2026
“These attacks constitute a dangerous escalation and an unacceptable transgression,” said a statement from the UAE’s foreign ministry, adding that it “reserves its full and legitimate right to respond to these attacks.”
From Los Angeles Times • May 4, 2026
The ship itself and the artifacts constitute a stunning time capsule, giving us a unique record of maritime and everyday life in Tudor England.
From "Shipwrecked!" by Martin W. Sandler
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.
