firm
1 Americanadjective
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firmer,
comparative
-
firmest
superlative
-
not soft or yielding when pressed; comparatively solid, hard, stiff, or rigid.
firm ground;
firm texture.
-
securely fixed in place.
-
not shaking or trembling; steady.
a firm voice.
-
not likely to change; fixed; settled; unalterable.
a firm belief.
- Synonyms:
- confirmed
-
steadfast or unwavering, as persons or principles.
firm friends.
- Synonyms:
- reliable, staunch, immovable, determined
-
indicating firmness or determination.
a firm expression.
-
not fluctuating much or falling, as prices, values, etc..
The stock market was firm today.
verb (used with object)
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firms,
present (3rd person singular)
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firmed,
past participle, past
-
firming
present participle
-
to make firm; tighten or strengthen (sometimes followed byup ).
to firm up one's hold on something.
-
to steady or fix (sometimes followed byup ).
to firm up prices.
verb (used without object)
-
firms,
present (3rd person singular)
-
firmed,
past participle, past
-
firming
present participle
-
to become firm or fixed (sometimes followed byup ).
Butter firms by churning.
-
(of prices, markets, etc.) to recover; become stronger, as after a decline (sometimes followed byup ).
Stock prices firmed again today.
adverb
adjective
-
not soft or yielding to a touch or pressure; rigid; solid
-
securely in position; stable or stationary
-
definitely established; decided; settled
-
enduring or steady; constant
-
having determination or strength; resolute
-
(of prices, markets, etc) tending to rise
adverb
verb
-
(sometimes foll by up) to make or become firm
-
(intr) horse racing (of a horse) to shorten in odds
noun
-
a business partnership
-
any commercial enterprise
-
a team of doctors and their assistants
-
slang
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a gang of criminals
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a gang of football hooligans
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Synonym Usage
Firm, hard, solid, stiff are applied to substances that tend to retain their form unaltered in spite of pressure or force. Firm often implies that something has been brought from a yielding state to a fixed or elastic one: An increased amount of pectin makes jellies firm. Hard is applied to substances so resistant that it is difficult to make any impression upon their surface or to penetrate their interior: as hard as a stone. Solid is applied to substances that without external support retain their form and resist pressure: Water in the form of ice is solid. It sometimes denotes the opposite of hollow: a solid block of marble. Stiff implies rigidity that resists a bending force: as stiff as a poker.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Adjectives
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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firmsimple
-
firmssimple
-
have firmedperfect
-
has firmedperfect
-
am firmingprogressive
-
are firmingprogressive
-
is firmingprogressive
-
have been firmingperfect progressive
-
has been firmingperfect progressive
Past
-
firmedsimple
-
had firmedperfect
-
was firmingprogressive
-
were firmingprogressive
-
had been firmingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of firm1
First recorded in 1300–50; from Latin firmus; replacing Middle English ferm(e), from Middle French ferm(e), from Latin
Origin of firm2
First recorded in 1565–75; from Spanish firma “signature” (hence, legal name of a partnership), noun derivative of firmar “to sign,” from Latin firmāre “to strengthen, confirm,” derivative of firmus firm 1
Explanation
The adjective firm describes something that's strong and unwavering. If your great Aunt Martha had a firm belief that children should be seen and not heard, you and your siblings might have spent your childhood driving her crazy. Something that is solid can also be described as firm. When you take a stick of butter out of the fridge, it's firm, and it needs to soften before you cream it with sugar. Another definition for the adjective firm is unwavering or loyal. You might be a firm supporter of your favorite baseball team, even though they haven't made it to a World Series in more than twenty years.
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.
See Examples For:
Now, the firm is breaking into prediction block trades for hedge funds, family offices and other institutions.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 3, 2026
Gavin de Becker, a security consultant for celebrities whose firm originally developed the terminal, has leveled serious accusations against the lounge’s current operator.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2026
"The club's firm position is that, on multiple grounds, the opinion contains clear material errors, of law, principle and fact and is unsafe," City said in a statement.
From Barron's ● Oct. 2, 2026
Trendforce, a research firm, said China’s manufacturing advantage could help it whittle away at America’s lead, since it could deploy humanoids faster at scale.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 2, 2026
Hers were noisy, and they had dangling shoelaces flapping, unlike his mom's softer steps or his dad's firm, big ones.
From "All About Sam" by Lois Lowry
At the same time, many shipping firms are carrying oil out of the Gulf by shuttling supplies just outside Hormuz, where it can be transferred to vessels headed elsewhere.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026
Meanwhile, the global supply chain that American firms rely on often requires lead times that can stretch several weeks compared to their Chinese peers.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 2, 2026
The result is that, outside AI, companies and consumers are being hit by a triple-whammy of higher rates, higher fuel prices and competition from AI firms for staff, equipment and capital.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026
Prosecutors were handed an evidence file on 20 organisations and firms and 54 individuals from the Metropolitan Police earlier this week.
From BBC ● Oct. 2, 2026
The opacity and complexity of the bond market was, for big Wall Street firms, a huge advantage.
From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis
It "will bolster market expectations for firmer monetary policy from the Federal Reserve as it seeks to ensure inflation is tamped out," he added.
From Barron's ● Sep. 30, 2026
Someone who has a large and heavy head also needs a thicker and firmer pillow, he adds.
From BBC ● Sep. 27, 2026
Price readings were firmer than expected through the spring before easing in June and July.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 10, 2026
The firmer reading was led by higher diesel fuel prices.
From Barron's ● Sep. 10, 2026
Then the taste...It was like the smell, but stronger, sweeter, firmer.
From "Miracles on Maple Hill" by Virginia Sorensen
The new Chairman of the Federal Reserve on Friday delivered his firmest statement to date of his determination to tame inflation, and the clearest explanation of how he thinks the Fed should get there.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026
Intel looks to be “on its firmest footing in years,” Seaport Research analyst Jay Goldberg said in a Thursday note.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 25, 2026
He said the 17th green, typically one of the firmest on the course, is a good example of that.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 9, 2026
He went straight over, gave him the firmest of hugs and placed round his neck the winners' medal he had been given by Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin.
From BBC ● Jun. 7, 2023
In her gentlest but firmest way, she gathered up the surviving demons and set them in work crews to clearing the mounds from which people were calling.
From "Dragonwings" by Laurence Yep
Gold futures settled modestly lower as the U.S. dollar firmed and yields edged up, while finding some support in lower oil prices that if sustained could ease inflation pressures.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 23, 2026
“MAGS is on the verge of breaking out and looks quite positive here, with stocks like Apple, Alphabet, and Meta having all firmed up nicely in recent days,” said Fundstrat’s Newton.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 15, 2026
But as Aronimink firmed up on a hot day, the players at the top of the leaderboard struggled to match those numbers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 17, 2026
That position probably isn’t at risk—the two companies recently disclosed an agreement which firmed up their relationship through 2031.
From Barron's ● Apr. 20, 2026
Remembering La Llorona’s warning, I firmed up my resolve.
From "Summer of the Mariposas" by Guadalupe García McCall
Oil’s retreat overshadowed a firming of August consumer prices.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026
The report suggests the labor market is firming across multiple sectors after near-zero job growth last year, despite more recent concerns about rising energy prices that have driven consumer sentiment to a record low.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 25, 2026
With inflation at a three-year high and a firming labor market, pressure has been increasing for the Fed to address rising prices by potentially raising interest rates.
From Barron's ● Jun. 16, 2026
The Bank of Japan said it is carefully monitoring the risk that oil prices may accelerate underlying inflation, firming expectations of a summer rate hike.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 20, 2026
After the earth has been firmed about the roots and the hole is nearly filled, the water should be poured in and the hole filled without more firming.
From Manual of American Grape-Growing by U. P. Hedrick
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.
