entrust
Americanverb (used with object)
verb
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(usually foll by with) to invest or charge (with a duty, responsibility, etc)
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(often foll by to) to put into the care or protection of someone
Usage
It is usually considered incorrect to talk about entrusting someone to do something: the army cannot be trusted (not entrusted ) to carry out orders
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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entrustsimple
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entrustssimple
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have entrustedperfect
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has entrustedperfect
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am entrustingprogressive
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are entrustingprogressive
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is entrustingprogressive
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have been entrustingperfect progressive
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has been entrustingperfect progressive
Past
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entrustedsimple
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had entrustedperfect
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was entrustingprogressive
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were entrustingprogressive
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had been entrustingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of entrust
Explanation
To entrust is to give someone a responsibility you assume she will fulfill. If you entrust someone with the task of getting you to school on time, make sure she’s punctual. To entrust is to let someone take care of something for you because you believe she will protect it. It could be a duty or a thing — you might entrust a nursing home with the care of your parents or entrust an accountant with your finances. Entrust is a verb that needs an object, so you always entrust with or to something. If a friend entrusts you with a secret, she trusts you not to tell.
Vocabulary lists containing entrust
myPerspectives 9.2
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President Obama's second inaugural address
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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.
Some takeaways from Elm as we entrust more of our lives to AI: The models understood better than most humans how to size simple bets like coin flips.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 18, 2026
America’s Founders and Adam Smith knew better than to entrust the future to philosopher-kings.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 19, 2026
Murrin’s case highlights pitfalls that lurk when people entrust someone with their taxes, according to Olson.
From MarketWatch • Feb. 27, 2026
Miles said he did not want to entrust the tickets to the postal system, so he arranged to meet Kai's customers in hotels across England to hand them over personally.
From BBC • Nov. 23, 2025
“If I were Ella St. Clay and I wanted to protect each page, what better way than to entrust each key with the one person who lived through the story!”
From "The Way to Rio Luna" by Zoraida Cordova
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.
