convert

¹ American  

[kuhn-vurt, kon-vurt] / kənˈvɜrt, ˈkɒn vɜrt /

verb (used with object)

• converts,
  present (3rd person singular)
• converted,
  past participle,  past
• converting
  present participle

1. 

   to change (something) into a different form or properties; transmute; transform.

2. to cause to adopt a different religion, political doctrine, opinion, etc..

   to convert the heathen.

   Synonyms:

   proselytize

3. to turn to another or a particular use or purpose; divert from the original or intended use.

   They converted the study into a nursery for the baby.

4. to modify (something) so as to serve a different function.

   to convert an automobile factory to the manufacture of tanks.

5. to obtain an equivalent value for in an exchange or calculation, as money or units of measurement.

   to convert bank notes into gold; to convert yards into meters.

6. Finance. to exchange voluntarily (a bond or preferred stock) into another security, usually common stock, because of the greater value of the latter.

7. to change in character; cause to turn from an evil life to a righteous one.

   to convert a criminal.

8. Chemistry. to cause (a substance) to undergo a chemical change.

   to convert sugar into alcohol.

9. to invert or transpose.

10. Law.

    1. to assume unlawful rights of ownership of (personal property).

    2. to change the form of (property), as from realty to personalty or vice versa.

11. to appropriate wrongfully to one's own use.

12. Logic. to transpose the subject and predicate of (a proposition) by conversion.

13. Computers. to subject to conversion.

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verb (used without object)

• converts,
  present (3rd person singular)
• converted,
  past participle,  past
• converting
  present participle

1. to become converted.

2. Football. to make a conversion.

noun

1. one who has been converted, as to a religion or opinion.

   Synonyms:

   neophyte, proselyte, novice

convert ² American  

[kon-vurt] / ˈkɒn vɜrt /

noun

Informal.

1. a convertible automobile.

2. a convertible bond.

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convert British  

verb

1. to change or adapt the form, character, or function of; transform

2. to cause (someone) to change in opinion, belief, etc

3. to change (a person or his way of life, etc) for the better

4. (intr) to admit of being changed (into)

   the table converts into a tray

5. (also intr) to change or be changed into another chemical compound or physical state

   to convert water into ice

6. law

   1. to assume unlawful proprietary rights over (personal property)

   2. to change (property) from realty into personalty or vice versa

7. (also intr) rugby to make a conversion after (a try)

8. logic to transpose the subject and predicate of (a proposition) by conversion

9. to change (a value or measurement) from one system of units to another

10. to exchange (a security or bond) for something of equivalent value

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noun

1. a person who has been converted to another belief, religion, etc

Synonym Usage

See transform.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• convertive
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• converting
  present
• converted
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• convert
  simple
• converts
  simple
• have converted
  perfect
• has converted
  perfect
• am converting
  progressive
• are converting
  progressive
• is converting
  progressive
• have been converting
  perfect progressive
• has been converting
  perfect progressive

Past

• converted
  simple
• had converted
  perfect
• was converting
  progressive
• were converting
  progressive
• had been converting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will convert
  simple
• will have converted
  perfect
• will be converting
  progressive
• will have been converting
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of convert¹

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English verb converten, from Latin convertere “to change completely,” equivalent to con- intensive prefix + vertere “to turn”; noun convert replacing converse, Middle English convers, ultimately from Latin conversus; see also converse ², verse ¹

Origin of convert²

By shortening of convertible

Explanation

Think of the word convert as meaning "change," whether it is a person who adopts a new belief, or a changing action, such as when you convert dollars into euros. Many times we can catch a word's meaning by looking at its origins. In this case, the Latin con means "around," while vertere means "turn." So we can figure that convert means to "turn around," an object or one's thoughts on an idea. For example, you might convert a meat eater into a vegetarian or an empty-nester might convert the kids' bedroom into an exercise room.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

convert converts converted converting

The Scarlet Knights ran a fake punt to convert a fourth-and-21 for a 44-yard gain that sparked a touchdown drive to close the gap to 3 points.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 24, 2026

He argues that it doesn't make sense to constantly convert data from photons to electrons and back to photons.

From BBC ● Sep. 22, 2026

If the approach proves successful, it could open new ways to convert large volumes of industrial waste into marketable products.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 19, 2026

"We were applying huge pressure. We just didn't convert."

From BBC ● Sep. 19, 2026

Sahagun is known as the first American anthropologist, for he labored for decades to understand the Indians he sought to convert.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann

During flight, the AI-based policy receives information about the robot's position and converts it into real-time commands controlling factors such as thrust force and torques.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 22, 2026

“We think the lockup-expiry overhang is an opportunity rather than a risk, offering a rare entry point into a generational compounder that converts energy into swarming,” the bullish analyst said in a recent client note.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 20, 2026

The focus of Eagers Automotive’s 1H result will be on vehicle availability and the speed at which it converts a larger order book to sales in 2H, says Jefferies.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026

Three days after the executive order, the White House implemented the order through National Security Presidential Memorandum 7, which converts the fiction into machinery.

From Salon ● Jul. 23, 2026

I’ve heard Father say this many times, even though in our own family there are converts, called conversos.

From "Across So Many Seas" by Ruth Behar

Her aunt has converted $600 into worthless Iraqi dinars and Zimbabwean dollars that she thinks she’ll be able to use to get access to the technology when it becomes available.

From Slate ● Sep. 22, 2026

When it reaches the surface, the chemical potential is converted into kinetic energy, giving the muonium atom a boost that sends it vertically upward.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 18, 2026

Under the proposal, MoD Bicester could be converted into basic accommodation to house up to 1,256 male asylum seekers.

From BBC ● Sep. 15, 2026

Thousands of homes and villas have been converted to short-term rentals like Airbnbs, and a black market for illegal apartment rentals has further constrained housing supply for locals.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 12, 2026

I thought I had finally converted his rotten soul.

From "The Many Assassinations of Samir, the Seller of Dreams" by Daniel Nayeri

Leslie’s expects to hand control of the business to its lenders in exchange for converting their roughly $750 million term loan into equity, one of the people said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026

If nothing in tax law or life ever changed, paying taxes now or later would be a wash, and converting a traditional IRA to a Roth wouldn’t gain you anything.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 22, 2026

Building on that long history, Dai proposed using molten salts for an entirely different purpose: converting discarded polymers into useful fuels.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 21, 2026

Google will build new data centres in Kajaani, Muhos and Vaala, while expanding its existing facility in Hamina, which it established after converting a former paper mill in 2009.

From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026

Mark Oliphant developed a method of converting the water to gas with virtually no loss, allowing the lab to recycle the precious supply over and over again.

From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik

Related Words

• apply
• download
• modify
• remodel
• reorganize
• switch
• transform
• translate
• turn