engage

[ en-geyj ]

/ ɛnˈgeɪdʒ /

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See synonyms for: engage / engaged / engages / engaging on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object), en·gaged, en·gag·ing.

to occupy the attention or efforts of (a person or persons): He engaged her in conversation.

to secure for aid, employment, use, etc.; hire: to engage a worker; to engage a room.

to attract and hold fast: The novel engaged her attention and interest.

to attract or please: His good nature engages everyone.

to bind, as by pledge, promise, contract, or oath; make liable: He engaged himself to repay his debt within a month.

to betroth (usually used in the passive): They were engaged last week.

to bring (troops) into conflict; enter into conflict with: Our army engaged the enemy.

Mechanics. to cause (gears or the like) to become interlocked; interlock with.

to attach or secure.

Obsolete. to entangle or involve.

verb (used without object), en·gaged, en·gag·ing.

to occupy oneself; become involved: to engage in business or politics.

to take employment: She engaged in her mother's business.

to pledge one's word; assume an obligation: I was unwilling to engage on such terms.

to cross weapons; enter into conflict: The armies engaged early in the morning.

Mechanics. (of gears or the like) to interlock.

OTHER WORDS FOR engage

1 absorb, engross, interest, involve.

See synonyms for engage on Thesaurus.com

OPPOSITES FOR engage

2 discharge.

8 release.

See antonyms for engage on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of engage

1515–25; <Middle French engager,Old French engagier.See en-¹, gage¹

OTHER WORDS FROM engage

en·gag·er, noun

Words nearby engage

enforcer, enframe, enfranchise, eng, Engadine, engage, engaged, engaged tone, engagée, engagement, engagement calendar

Other definitions for engage (2 of 2)

engagé

[ French ahn-ga-zhey ]

/ French ɑ̃ gaˈʒeɪ /

adjective

choosing to involve oneself in or commit oneself to something: Some of the political activists grew less engagé as the years passed.

Origin of engagé

1950–55; <French: literally, engaged

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use engage in a sentence

Crucially, the team engaged with critics rather than just dismissing them.
Is a successful contact tracing app possible? These countries think so.|Charlotte Jee|August 10, 2020|MIT Technology Review
Keep your knees bent, your feet flat on the floor, and your core engaged.
Prevent Overuse Climbing Injuries with These Exercises|Hayden Carpenter|August 8, 2020|Outside Online
People with good paying jobs like supervisors, managers, directors, and vice presidents do not normally engage in theft, drug deals, or gang activity.
I’m a Black Republican, and I agree with AOC on the link between poverty and crime|jakemeth|August 1, 2020|Fortune
Some lawmakers feared that landlords would literally run tenants off of properties at gunpoint or engage other forms of extralegal self-help.
Landlord-Leaning Eviction Courts Are About To Make The Coronavirus Housing Crisis a Lot Worse|LGBTQ-Editor|July 31, 2020|No Straight News

Food isn’t the only thing we share, but eating is a particularly good example of a shared activity because it’s necessary, and because we engage in it throughout our lives—unlike playing with blocks, perhaps.
What we’ll lose if the pandemic puts an end to the sharing of food|Michal Lev-Ram, writer|July 19, 2020|Fortune
Then we all have to do our part to engage the officers and our community, and hold everyone accountable in the process.
How to Solve the Policing Crisis|Keli Goff|January 5, 2015|DAILY BEAST
The Millennial Action Project (MAP) seeks to engage young people in politics and give them more of a voice in governing.
When Will We See a #Millennial Congress?|Linda Killian|December 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Not that he ever planned to engage in the controversy directly.
Rob Marshall Defends ‘Into the Woods’|Kevin Fallon|December 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Cook walked more slowly than most, stopping to engage with passersby who expressed their own frustration and support.
‘They Let Him Off?’ Scenes from NYC in Disbelief|Jacob Siegel|December 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Such messages are unlikely to be beloved of secularists who prefer to scoff at the religious rather than engage with them.
Extreme Weather? Blame the End Times|Jay Michaelson|November 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He continued its sale, however, as a kingly monopoly, allowing only those to engage in it who paid him for the privilege.
Tobacco; Its History, Varieties, Culture, Manufacture and Commerce|E. R. Billings.
We have other things to engage us now, but I sometimes think all is not gain that the march of progress brings.
Fifty Years of Railway Life in England, Scotland and Ireland|Joseph Tatlow
I only engage that the engine shall be equal to a B. and Watt's 72-inch single, but it will be equal to a double 72-inch cylinder.
Life of Richard Trevithick, Volume II (of 2)|Francis Trevithick
A ship will sail for the South Sea fishery in about five weeks, and will engage to take the whole of the engines.
Life of Richard Trevithick, Volume II (of 2)|Francis Trevithick
In the instructions that may be given to Uville, it shall be stipulated on what terms he may engage one or two English workmen.
Life of Richard Trevithick, Volume II (of 2)|Francis Trevithick

British Dictionary definitions for engage (1 of 2)

engage

/ (ɪnˈɡeɪdʒ) /

verb (mainly tr)

to secure the services of; employ

to secure for use; reserveengage a room

to involve (a person or his attention) intensely; engross; occupy

to attract (the affection) of (a person)her innocence engaged him

to draw (somebody) into conversation

(intr) to take part; participatehe engages in many sports

to promise (to do something)

(also intr) military to begin an action with (an enemy)

to bring (a mechanism) into operationhe engaged the clutch

(also intr) to undergo or cause to undergo interlocking, as of the components of a driving mechanism, such as a gear train

machinery to locate (a locking device) in its operative position or to advance (a tool) into a workpiece to commence cutting

Derived forms of engage

engager, noun

Word Origin for engage

C15: from Old French engagier, from en- 1 + gage a pledge, see gage 1

British Dictionary definitions for engage (2 of 2)

engagé

/ French (ɑ̃ɡaʒe) /

adjective

(of a writer or artist, esp a man) morally or politically committed to some ideology

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

engage

OTHER WORDS FOR engage

OPPOSITES FOR engage

Origin of engage

OTHER WORDS FROM engage

Words nearby engage

Other definitions for engage (2 of 2)

Origin of engagé

Words related to engage

How to use engage in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for engage (1 of 2)

Derived forms of engage

Word Origin for engage

British Dictionary definitions for engage (2 of 2)