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• fit
  fit

  adjective

  adapted or suited; appropriate.
• FIT
  FIT

  Federal Insurance Tax.

fit

¹ American  

[fit] / fɪt /

adjective

• fitter,
  comparative
• fittest
  superlative

1. adapted or suited; appropriate.

   This water isn't fit for drinking.

   A long-necked giraffe is fit for browsing treetops.

   Synonyms:

   apropos, applicable, meet, proper, apt, suitable

2. proper or becoming.

   This is not fit behavior for a funeral service.

   Synonyms:

   befitting, fitting

3. qualified or competent, as for an office or function.

   It took several interviews to find a fit candidate for the position.

4. prepared or ready.

   Constant updating of methods and equipment will ensure that we're fit for the future.

5. in good physical condition; in good health.

   He's fit for the race.

   Synonyms:

   robust, strong, hardy, hale, healthy

6. Biology.

   1. being adapted to the prevailing conditions and producing offspring that survive to reproductive age.

   2. contributing genetic information to the gene pool of the next generation.

   3. (of a population) maintaining or increasing the group's numbers in the environment.

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verb (used with object)

fitted, fit, fitting

1. to be adapted to or suitable for (a purpose, object, occasion, etc.).

2. to be proper or becoming for.

3. to be of the right size or shape for.

   The dress fitted her perfectly.

4. to adjust or make conform.

   She had the jeweler fit the ring to her finger.

5. to make qualified or competent.

   Courage and patience are among the qualities that fit a person for leadership.

6. to prepare.

   This school fits students for college.

7. to put with precise placement or adjustment.

   He fitted the picture into the frame.

8. to provide; furnish; equip.

   I fitted the cabinet door with a new handle.

9. Statistics. to predict, calculate, or project (values) according to a model based on existing data.

verb (used without object)

fitted, fit, fitting

1. to be suitable or proper.

2. to be of the right size or shape, as a garment for the wearer or any object or part for a thing to which it is applied.

   The shoes fit.

noun

1. the manner in which a thing fits.

   The fit was perfect.

2. something that fits.

   The coat is a poor fit.

3. the process of fitting.

verb phrase

1. fit out / up to furnish with supplies, equipment, clothing, furniture, or other requisites; supply; equip.

   In Kathmandu they found a supplier to fit out the trekking expedition.

idioms

1. fit the bill. bill.

2. fit to kill, to the limit; exceedingly.

   She was dressed up fit to kill.

3. fit to be tied, extremely annoyed or angry.

   He was fit to be tied when I told him I'd wrecked the car.

fit ² American  

[fit] / fɪt /

noun

1. a sudden, acute attack or manifestation of a disease, especially one marked by convulsions or unconsciousness.

   a fit of epilepsy.

2. an onset, spell, or period of emotion, feeling, inclination, activity, etc..

   a fit of anger;

   a fit of weeping.

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idioms

1. by / in fits and starts, at irregular intervals; intermittently.

   This radio works by fits and starts.

2. throw a fit, to become extremely excited or angry.

   Your father will throw a fit when he hears what you have done.

fit ³ American  

[fit] / fɪt /

noun

Archaic.

1. a song, ballad, or story.

2. a division of a song, ballad, or story.

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fit ⁴ American  

[fit] / fɪt /

verb

Nonstandard (chiefly Older Use).

1. simple past tense of fight.

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FIT ⁵ American  

1. Banking. Federal Insurance Tax.

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fit ¹ British  

/ fɪt /

verb

1. to be appropriate or suitable for (a situation, etc)

2. to be of the correct size or shape for (a connection, container, etc)

3. (tr) to adjust in order to render appropriate

   they had to fit the idea to their philosophy

4. (tr) to supply with that which is needed

5. (tr) to try clothes on (someone) in order to make adjustments if necessary

6. (tr) to make competent or ready

   the experience helped to fit him for the task

7. (tr) to locate with care

8. (intr) to correspond with the facts or circumstances

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adjective

1. suitable to a purpose or design; appropriate

2. having the right qualifications; qualifying

3. in good health

4. worthy or deserving

   a book fit to be read

5. (foll by an infinitive) in such an extreme condition that a specified consequence is likely

   she was fit to scream

   you look fit to drop

6. informal (of a person) sexually attractive

noun

1. the manner in which something fits

2. the act or process of fitting

3. statistics the correspondence between observed and predicted characteristics of a distribution or model See goodness of fit

fit ² British  

/ fɪt /

noun

1. pathol a sudden attack or convulsion, such as an epileptic seizure

2. a sudden spell of emotion

   a fit of anger

3. an impulsive period of activity or lack of activity; mood

   a fit of laziness

4. to surprise a person in an outrageous manner

5. informal to become very angry or excited

6. in spasmodic spells; irregularly

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verb

1. informal (intr) to have a sudden attack or convulsion, such as an epileptic seizure

fit ³ British  

/ fɪt /

noun

1. archaic a story or song or a section of a story or song

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fit More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing fit

• give someone fits
• have a fit
• if the shoe fits
• see fit to
• survival of the fittest

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Usage

Both fit and fitted are standard as past tense and past participle of fit1 : The new door fit (or fitted ) the old frame perfectly. The suit had fitted (or fit ) well last year. Fitted is somewhat more common than fit in the sense “to adjust, make conform”: The tailor fitted the suit with a minimum of fuss. In the passive voice, fitted is the more common past participle: The door was fitted with a new handle.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• fittable
  adjective
• unfittable
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Adjectives

• fitter
  comparative
• fittest
  superlative

Etymology

Origin of fit¹

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English fitten, fetten “to marshal or deploy troops; to be fitting, befit;” possibly from Old Norse fitja “to web, knit;” akin to Middle Dutch vitten “to befit”

Origin of fit²

First recorded before 1000; Middle English; Old English fitt “round of fighting”; see fit ³

Origin of fit³

First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English fitt “round of singing, canto, song, speech”

Origin of fit⁴

First recorded in 1805–10

Explanation

"Don't have a fit about it!" someone might snap at you. Chances are you're making a fuss and acting out, characteristics that precisely fit or match what having a fit involves. Chill out. When something fits like a glove, it fits just right. When you put a glove on, you fit each finger into its place. The word fit can mean "matching the shape of something" or "being a good match," like two people who meet online and turn out to be a good fit for one another. But its definitions are not always so rosy. If you're really angry and find yourself throwing a tantrum, you're having a fit.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

fit FIT fitter fittest fitted fitting

The study also suggests that people with lower fitness levels may need slightly more exercise than highly fit individuals to receive similar cardiovascular benefits.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 8, 2026

"I hope that if it's proven that he did do this, I hope the punishment will fit the crime," says Matt Kincanon, who lost his home in the Old Trails Fire.

From BBC ● Aug. 7, 2026

You’re making an impression with what you wear and really don’t want to give the boss or colleagues the impression that you don’t fit in here.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026

Kuntz said after evaluating various options to strengthen the roster, the club concluded that Lozano was the ideal fit to help them tackle the final 15 games of the season.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 7, 2026

“He wasn’t the right fit for us. Right, Dad?”

From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam

For the first semester of its program, which concluded in December, FIT received more than 190 applications for 15 spots.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 21, 2026

To this end, the researchers in Düsseldorf examined the interactions between FIT and other proteins in nuclear condensates in more detail.

From Science Daily ● Feb. 23, 2024

The report highlights the importance of screening, in particular access to the new FIT test for bowel screening.

From BBC ● Oct. 26, 2023

Earlier this year, the Museum at FIT celebrated hip-hop fashion with an exhibition titled "Fresh, Fly and Fabulous: 50 Years of Hip Hop Style."

From Reuters ● Sep. 5, 2023

Make the public-house FIT for women and children.

From The New Machiavelli by Wells, H. G. (Herbert George)

The people included in the study may have been healthier and fitter than the general population.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 8, 2026

Born in Prescot, Sir George was educated at Huyton Secondary School before working as a fitter, engineer and further education lecturer.

From BBC ● Jul. 6, 2026

Plus, it’s a measure of progress—the fitter I get, the easier my heart works.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 7, 2026

Trump often boasts about his health, saying that he is far fitter than previous presidents despite his weight and a love of fast food.

From Barron's ● May 26, 2026

Hazel’s leg was stronger and Bigwig felt fitter than at any time since he went into Efrafa.

From "Watership Down: A Novel" by Richard Adams

Those who have played there before explain that the opening 20 minutes are the most crucial period, even for some of the fittest athletes in sports.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 5, 2026

Molango fears the World Cup will simply become a "survival of the fittest".

From BBC ● May 26, 2026

Never before had an African country hosted this weeklong series of competitions, in which the planet’s best cyclists assemble to determine the year’s fittest and the fastest.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2025

"I am back and really enjoying my rugby, I am feeling the fittest I have ever done," Breach told BBC Sport.

From BBC ● Aug. 30, 2025

Davenport, the Harvard-trained zoologist famous for establishing the Eugenics Record Office, created a standardized evaluation form to judge the fittest babies.

From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee

We might as well require a man to wear still the coat which fitted him when a boy as a civilized society to remain ever under the regimen of their barbarous ancestors.

From Slate ● Aug. 3, 2026

The ULR in its designation stands for "ultra long distance", a feat made possible by an additional 20,000-litre rear centre fuel tank being fitted to Airbus's A350-1000 model.

From Barron's ● Jul. 28, 2026

Schools, hospitals and all new homes in the UK should be fitted with air conditioning or other air cooling systems, the Liberal Democrats have said.

From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026

More than 5,200 firefighters, police and soldiers have been deployed to the region, along with 18 firefighting aircraft, including a military transport plane that was fitted with a temporary tank.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 26, 2026

There on the sill, the broken pieces fitted carefully together, sat the wooden triangle.

From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom

The comparison is fitting because granulation is produced by moving plasma.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 8, 2026

The site is fitting, since John and Abigail were the White House’s first residents.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026

Lhuillier posted some clips from the Vogue fitting on social media and wrote that designing Roberts’ gown was about capturing a feeling of timeless romance through a modern lens.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 27, 2026

The scandal erupted in September 2015 when German automaker Volkswagen admitted fitting millions of vehicles with software to make engines appear less polluting in regulatory tests than in real driving conditions.

From Barron's ● Jul. 27, 2026

Everyone agreed that it would be a fitting, middle-of-America backdrop for what we hoped would be a different kind of campaign—one led from the ground up, largely by people new to the political process.

From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama

Related Words

• able
• apt
• capable
• competent
• happy
• prepared
• qualified
• wise