establish
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to found, institute, build, or bring into being on a firm or stable basis.
to establish a university; to establish a medical practice.
- Antonyms:
- abolish
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to install or settle in a position, place, business, etc..
to establish one's child in business.
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to show to be valid or true; prove.
to establish the facts of the matter.
- Synonyms:
- substantiate, verify
- Antonyms:
- disprove
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to cause to be accepted or recognized.
to establish a custom; She established herself as a leading surgeon.
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to bring about permanently.
to establish order.
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to enact, appoint, or ordain for permanence, as a law; fix unalterably.
- Synonyms:
- decree
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to make (a church) a national or state institution.
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Cards. to obtain control of (a suit) so that one can win all the subsequent tricks in it.
verb
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to make secure or permanent in a certain place, condition, job, etc
to establish one's usefulness
to establish a house
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to create or set up (an organization, etc) on or as if on a permanent basis
to establish a company
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to prove correct or free from doubt; validate
to establish a fact
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to cause (a principle, theory, etc) to be widely or permanently accepted
to establish a precedent
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to give (a Church) the status of a national institution
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(of a person) to become recognized and accepted
he established himself as a reliable GP
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(in works of imagination) to cause (a character, place, etc) to be credible and recognized
the first scene established the period
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cards to make winners of (the remaining cards of a suit) by forcing out opponents' top cards
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(also intr) botany
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to cause (a plant) to grow or (of a plant) to grow in a new place
the birch scrub has established over the past 25 years
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to become or cause to become a sapling or adult plant from a seedling
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Related Words
See fix.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of establish
First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English establissen, establishen, from Middle French establiss-, extended stem of establir, from Latin stabilīre, derivative of stabilis stable 2
Explanation
To establish something means to begin it or bring it about. If you want everyone in your family to bring you chocolate every evening, you can establish a “Chocolates for Me” policy requiring it. Establish is related to stable through its Latin roots and has many meanings, but all have the feel of building on a stable foundation. Besides the meaning of setting a policy, establish can also mean to prove one's value. You should establish yourself in a community before you try to bring change to it. Similarly, if you like to debate controversial issues, you'd best begin with facts that have been established and are not open to question. If you have a lot of money and want to build up your community, you can establish, or found, a school or library there.
Vocabulary lists containing establish
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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Preamble to the U.S. Constitution (1787)
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Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
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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.
Agents will establish their citizenship and “promptly let the individual go.”
From Salon • May 24, 2026
Elma helped him recruit Christians to establish the Edinburgh branch and he would stay at her home about once a month when he came to host services.
From BBC • May 22, 2026
The investor buys an out-of-the-money, or OTM, put to establish a price floor and provide insurance against a heavy share-price drop.
From MarketWatch • May 22, 2026
Researchers first collected about 20 continuous hours of observations to establish a baseline measurement of the star's light.
From Science Daily • May 22, 2026
What he did was establish himself as the father of underwater archaeology and introduce the world to an enormously rewarding scientific discipline.
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.
