implement
Americannoun
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any article used in some activity, especially an instrument, tool, or utensil.
agricultural implements.
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an article of equipment, as household furniture, clothing, ecclesiastical vestments, or the like.
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a means; agent.
human beings as an implement of divine plan.
verb (used with object)
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to fulfill; perform; carry out.
Once in office, he failed to implement his campaign promises.
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to put into effect according to or by means of a definite plan or procedure.
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Computers. to realize or instantiate (an element in a program), often under certain conditions as specified by the software involved.
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to fill out or supplement.
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to provide with implements.
noun
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a piece of equipment; tool or utensil
gardening implements
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something used to achieve a purpose; agent
verb
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to carry out; put into action; perform
to implement a plan
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archaic to complete, satisfy, or fulfil
Usage
What are other ways to say implement? The word implement broadly refers to any article used in some activity. When should you use this noun over tool, instrument, or utensil? Learn more on Thesaurus.com.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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implementationnoun
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implementernoun
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implementornoun
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nonimplementnoun
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reimplementverb (used with object)
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implementableadjective
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implementaladjective
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nonimplementaladjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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implementsimple
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implementssimple
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have implementedperfect
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has implementedperfect
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am implementingprogressive
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are implementingprogressive
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is implementingprogressive
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have been implementingperfect progressive
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has been implementingperfect progressive
Past
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implementedsimple
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had implementedperfect
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was implementingprogressive
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were implementingprogressive
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had been implementingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of implement
First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English, from Late Latin implēmentum “a filling up,” equivalent to Latin implē(re) “to fill up” ( im- im- 1 + plēre “to fill” ) + -mentum -ment
Explanation
Apply the noun implement when you want to use a fancy word for "tool." A knife and fork are implements for handling food. The noun implement is a very useful word for just about anything you want to describe as a tool or a thing that helps you do something. An implement can be as simple as chimpanzees using a stick to eat ants with or a bulldozer that moves huge amounts of earth in building. The word relates to something that "fills up" a house, as in all sorts of things that allow a house to work properly.
Vocabulary lists containing implement
Essential English Vocabulary, List 1
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"A Retrieved Reformation" by O. Henry
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30 GRE Words Beginning with "I"
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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.
See Examples For:
He also said his first instruction would be a pledge to "end rough sleeping", a measure he attempted to implement as a regional mayor in northern England, although it was not fully successful.
From Barron's ● Jul. 20, 2026
The incident prompted the town to implement a program that encourages residents to request police-welfare checks for missing or vulnerable neighbors.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026
Sykes also ordered that within 14 days, ICE “develop and file a remedial plan to implement comprehensive systems for medical care and disability accommodations.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026
Yet its authority is not self-executing: It relies on lower courts to implement its decisions, extend their logic, and normalize the resulting excesses.
From Slate ● Jul. 17, 2026
A third strategy is to grab one rope in one hand and use an implement, such as a long pole, to pull the other rope toward you.
From "Blink" by Malcolm Gladwell
The project is one of the major street redesigns moving forward as Los Angeles implements Measure HLA.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026
According to Achilles, FSG frequently implements the 5-by-8 trim size.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 27, 2026
Mr. Payne went several times to General Pencil Co. in Jersey City, N.J., to document how these indispensable writing and drawing implements are made by the thousands and tens of thousands.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 25, 2026
The jump in Palantir should come as no surprise given the company implements a large portion of the AI technology at the Pentagon.
From Barron's ● Mar. 2, 2026
Their goal is to place the IBM Selectric II beside the feather quill and chisel in the museum of antiquated writing implements.
From "Me Talk Pretty One Day" by David Sedaris
Shields, a lifelong Southern California resident, struggled to book a reservation when Yosemite implemented the system until he finally snagged one in 2024.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026
“The number of trade remedies and trade-related actions that have been implemented over the last 18 months has just quadrupled everyone’s work, and so companies are really struggling to keep up,” Allen said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 21, 2026
The regulator says it has reached the limit of what it can legally do under the Online Safety Act because the forum has implemented the geoblock.
From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026
A: Beijing has implemented some censorship of the data that companies use to train models and of the output of those models.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 18, 2026
The music education methods of Orff, Dalcroze, Kodály, etc., offer easily implemented solutions to add layers of cognitively challenging musical activities to something as simple as a song.
From "Music and the Child" by Natalie Sarrazin
Cindy Allen, chief executive of Trade Force Multiplier, an international trade and customs consulting firm, said importers and customs brokers are implementing more technology to help manage changing trade policy.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 21, 2026
Nor is there any government policy implementing the act that mandates transgender management.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026
“We’re just implementing the agenda of the president as we’ve been directed through the national security strategy and the White House,” the State Department official told ProPublica.
From Salon ● Jul. 21, 2026
Plans for the proposed "anti-weaponisation" fund were abandoned in early June, just one week after another judge temporarily prevented justice department officials from implementing it.
From BBC ● Jul. 13, 2026
Quietly implementing policies about South Vietnam was nothing new for the president.
From "Boots on the Ground: America's War in Vietnam" by Elizabeth Partridge
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.
