Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

count on

British  

verb

  1. (intr, preposition) to rely or depend on

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
count on Idioms  

  1. Also, count upon. Rely on, depend on, as in You can always count on Kent to be punctual, or Carol was counting upon getting a raise in spring. [First half of 1600s]

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.

“Even if we signed a deal, how could we count on it?”

From Barron's • Apr. 23, 2026

They have more staying power than we do, they think, and Iran has more staying power than most, not least because it can count on proxies like Hezbollah.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 20, 2026

Outside his three Masters and three Open titles, Faldo won only three other events that count on the PGA Tour, although he played in a different time when the European Tour was stronger.

From BBC • Apr. 13, 2026

LA28 organizers probably didn’t count on such words accompanying their first big ticket rollout ahead of the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games in Los Angeles.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 7, 2026

“We can’t count on there being a tour when we go,” Aaron said.

From "Boy 2.0" by Tracey Baptiste

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.