join
Americanverb (used with object)
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joins,
present (3rd person singular)
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joined,
past participle, past
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joining
present participle
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to bring in contact, connect, or bring or put together.
to join hands; to join pages with a staple.
- Synonyms:
- amalgamate, consolidate, associate, combine, conjoin, attach, fasten, couple, link
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to come into contact or union with.
The brook joins the river.
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to bring together in a particular relation or for a specific purpose, action, etc.; unite.
to join forces against the smugglers.
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to become a member of (an organization, party, etc.).
to join a club.
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to enlist in (one of the armed forces).
to join the Navy.
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to come into the company of; meet or accompany.
I'll join you later.
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to participate with (someone) in some act or activity.
My wife joins me in thanking you for the gift.
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to unite in marriage.
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to meet or engage in (battle, conflict, etc.).
The opposing armies joined battle.
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to adjoin; meet.
His land joins mine.
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to draw a curve or straight line between.
to join two points on a graph.
verb (used without object)
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joins,
present (3rd person singular)
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joined,
past participle, past
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joining
present participle
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to come into or be in contact or connection.
a place where cliffs and sea join.
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to become united, associated, or combined; associate or ally oneself; participate (usually followed bywith ).
Please join with us in our campaign.
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to take part with others (often followed byin ).
Let's all join in.
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to be contiguous or close; lie or come together; form a junction.
Our farms join along the river.
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to enlist in one of the armed forces (often followed byup ).
He joined up to fight for his country.
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to meet in battle or conflict.
verb
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to come or bring together; connect
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to become a member of (a club, organization, etc)
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to become associated or allied
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to take part
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(tr) to meet (someone) as a companion
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(tr) to become part of; take a place in or with
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(tr) to unite (two people) in marriage
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(tr) geometry to connect with a straight line or a curve
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(tr) an informal word for adjoin
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to start fighting
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to report for work after a period of leave or a strike
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to hold one's own hands together
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(of two people) to hold each other's hands
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(usually foll by with) to work together in an enterprise or task
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noun
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a joint; seam
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the act of joining
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maths another name for union
Usage
What are other ways to say join?
To join is to bring in contact, connect, or bring together. How is join different from connect and unite? Find out on Thesaurus.com.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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misjoinverb
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unjoinverb
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underjoinverb (used with object)
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joinableadjective
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unjoinableadjective
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well-joinedadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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joinsimple
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joinssimple
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have joinedperfect
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has joinedperfect
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am joiningprogressive
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are joiningprogressive
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is joiningprogressive
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have been joiningperfect progressive
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has been joiningperfect progressive
Past
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joinedsimple
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had joinedperfect
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was joiningprogressive
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were joiningprogressive
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had been joiningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of join
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English joinen, from Old French joign- (stem of joindre “to join”), from Latin jungere “to join”; see yoke 1 ( def. )
Explanation
To join is to connect, attach, or become a member of. You could join two puzzle pieces together or join the Girl Scouts; it's your choice. You can join two plastic tubes to make a long tunnel for your pet hamster, and you can also join a club — in other words, become a member or a part of the group. You can also join in with a song or join the staff of a swimming pool as a lifeguard. Join comes from the Old French word joindre, "connect or unite," from the Latin root iungere, "to join together, unite, or yoke."
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:
Warner film studio heads Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy aren’t expected to join the new company, people familiar with the matter said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 3, 2026
Andy Norfolk, a long-time friend and team-mate, did join James and their friends.
From BBC ● Oct. 2, 2026
Monét, who grew up dancing as a kid in Sacramento, moved to L.A. around 2008 to join a girl group assembled by producer Rodney Jerkins.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2026
He said Thursday that he hoped the North would "join us now on the path of restoring trust and resuming dialogue, following a long interruption" -- a day after the military demanded an apology.
From Barron's ● Oct. 2, 2026
I looked at Regan, waiting for her to join me in my meltdown, but to my surprise she had a familiar smile on her face.
From "Glitch" by Laura Martin
Vandemore joins from Skechers, where he was finance chief for the past nine years.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026
California now joins states like Maryland, Minnesota and Maine that have similarly placed restrictions on the sale of speculative tickets.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 28, 2026
For Gurr, content creation is a professional skill that organisations increasingly need, whether someone runs their own business, works in-house, joins an agency or works freelance across multiple clients.
From BBC ● Sep. 28, 2026
Britain's Chadwick joins an exclusive list of women to have driven an F1 car, after taking part in 32 laps at the Portimao circuit in Portugal, which will be on the F1 calendar in 2027.
From BBC ● Sep. 26, 2026
I secure Bobo’s door and slip into the connection, the roofless canvas tunnel that joins the menagerie to the big top.
From "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen
The startup Pickle on Thursday joined the agent craze with a “personal AI you raise,” a concept popularized by Tamagotchis in the 1990s.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 3, 2026
The movement took root in the early 1980s when Brain, his wife Lynne and small group of like-minded Christian friends joined St Thomas's church in Crookes.
From BBC ● Oct. 3, 2026
“They clearly have serious people doing serious work,” said Jon Scholes, president of the Downtown Seattle Association, who joined the trip.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 3, 2026
Parmelin joined the Federal Council in 2016 as defence minister and has held the economy brief since 2019.
From Barron's ● Oct. 2, 2026
Jonathan rested his cheek against the bark on the tree and, at the appropriate time, joined his sister’s song.
From "Earthquake Terror" by Peg Kehret
Pike bounced from one school to another before joining Knoxville Job Corps aged 18 - what was meant to be a new start.
From BBC ● Oct. 3, 2026
When Emma Thompson learned of Lasseter joining Skydance, she withdrew from its highly anticipated upcoming animated film “Luck.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2026
Twilio and Vylor are joining the benchmark index.
From Barron's ● Oct. 2, 2026
A friendship was born, and Star came over from Nashville in the US to Wales to meet Lewis, joining her at Pride Cymru.
From BBC ● Oct. 2, 2026
“Technically his mom did make him,” Mari said, joining with a smirk of her own.
From "Boy 2.0" by Tracey Baptiste
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.
