intend
Americanverb (used with object)
-
intends,
present (3rd person singular)
-
intended,
past participle, past
-
intending
present participle
-
to have in mind as something to be done or brought about; plan.
We intend to leave in a month.
- Synonyms:
- purpose, aim, expect, contemplate
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to design or mean for a particular purpose, use, recipient, etc..
a fund intended for emergency use only.
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to design to express or indicate, as by one's words; refer to.
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(of words, terms, statements, etc.) to mean or signify.
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Archaic. to direct (the eyes, mind, etc.).
verb (used without object)
-
intends,
present (3rd person singular)
-
intended,
past participle, past
-
intending
present participle
-
to have a purpose or design.
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Obsolete. to set out on one's course.
verb
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(may take a clause as object) to propose or plan (something or to do something); have in mind; mean
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to design or destine (for a certain purpose, person, etc)
that shot was intended for the President
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(tr) to mean to express or indicate
what do his words intend?
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(intr) to have a purpose as specified; mean
he intends well
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archaic (tr) to direct or turn (the attention, eyes, etc)
Synonym Usage
Intend, mean, design, propose imply knowing what one wishes to do and setting this as a goal. To intend is to have in mind something to be done or brought about: No offense was intended. Mean is a less formal word than intend but otherwise a close synonym: He means to go away. Design implies planning to effect a particular result: to design a plan for Christmas decorations. Propose suggests setting up a program for oneself or offering it to others for consideration: We propose to beautify our city.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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intendsimple
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intendssimple
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have intendedperfect
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has intendedperfect
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am intendingprogressive
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are intendingprogressive
-
is intendingprogressive
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have been intendingperfect progressive
-
has been intendingperfect progressive
Past
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intendedsimple
-
had intendedperfect
-
was intendingprogressive
-
were intendingprogressive
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had been intendingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of intend
First recorded in 1250–1300; from Latin intendere “to aim, assert, stretch out”; equivalent to in- 2 + tend 1; replacing Middle English entenden, from Old French entendre, from Latin, as above
Explanation
If you intend to do something, you mean to do it or have it in mind as a goal. Do you plan on getting your holiday cards in the mail before February this year? Then you intend on getting them out early. The world is full of good intentions, meaning there are lots of people who intend to be nice, eat better, floss more, or pick up their dirty socks. But things don't always go as planned. Your actions could produce results that you didn't expect, specify, or ever intend — that might explain the well-known proverb, "The road to Hell is paved with good intentions."
Vocabulary lists containing intend
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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:
Next year, however, players will be asked to disclose which tours they intend to play on, and their answer will be taken into account when deciding on their membership.
From BBC ● Oct. 12, 2026
The SEC came up with this innovation exemption, which allows just that, and we were one of the first to file notice with the SEC that we intend to launch it.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026
“We have asked the Court to overturn the verdict and intend to vigorously pursue all available post-trial and appellate remedies,” Joby said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026
By now, many Black Democrats have made clear that they intend on voting for him.
From Slate ● Oct. 6, 2026
“If I can do anything to help our children as schools open this fall, I intend to do it.”
From "The Best of Enemies" by Osha Gray Davidson
Mayor Karen Bass intends to sign the ordinance, which was spearheaded by Councilmembers Imelda Padilla and Eunisses Hernandez.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 13, 2026
The team also intends to examine other molecular processes involved in the liver's response to polyethylene.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 11, 2026
At a court hearing on Wednesday, Tennessee Assistant Attorney General Will Ayers told the judge he does not know whether the state intends to try to execute her again.
From BBC ● Oct. 10, 2026
What Hegseth intends to do would indeed be shameful.
From Slate ● Oct. 9, 2026
And no doubt that is just what he intends.
From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin
“I think people broadly agree the system is now doing things it was not intended to do,” says Paul Johnson, an expert in fiscal issues at the University of Oxford.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 12, 2026
In August, Meta launched Muse Code, a product intended to compete with similar automated coding tools offered by OpenAI and Anthropic.
From Barron's ● Oct. 12, 2026
“Honestly, I don’t think carousels were ever intended to last 100 years,” Sawitskas says.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 12, 2026
The companies agreed to work with "independent auditors" to assess whether their AI systems are working as intended and make sure they do not "hack or access technical systems in unintended ways".
From BBC ● Oct. 11, 2026
"She threw it at him last night. She intended him to discover it. She intended that this scene we have just witnessed should be played out."
From "Rowan of Rin" by Emily Rodda
"We had, really without intending to, created a mouse that produced these classic lesions of Alexander disease," Messing says.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 13, 2026
That’s insufficient under state law to support a vested mining interest — intending to mine there eventually isn’t enough, he said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 27, 2026
According to the initial findings of investigators, the suspect entered Poland from Germany overnight Wednesday-Thursday, intending to travel on to Ukraine.
From Barron's ● Sep. 26, 2026
People roll a portion of their balance to an IRA to “get started,” fully intending to deal with the stock later.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 10, 2026
She had moved forward in that moment, intending to rush to him, to greet and embrace him.
From "Son" by Lois Lowry
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.
