conform
Americanverb (used without object)
-
conforms,
present (3rd person singular)
-
conformed,
past participle, past
-
conforming
present participle
-
to act according to or be obedient to a rule or norm (usually followed byto ).
Every team must adopt and conform to league regulations.
- Antonyms:
- dissent
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to be in harmony or accord (usually followed bywith ).
These results conform with those of similar studies done in the past.
-
to act in accord with the prevailing standards, attitudes, practices, etc., of society or a group.
One has to conform in order to succeed in this company.
-
to be or become similar in form, nature, or character (usually followed byto ).
Memory conforms to what we think we remember.
I love how these slippers conform to my feet.
- Synonyms:
- tally, agree, correspond
- Antonyms:
- differ
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to comply with the usages of an established church, especially the Church of England.
- Antonyms:
- dissent
verb (used with object)
-
conforms,
present (3rd person singular)
-
conformed,
past participle, past
-
conforming
present participle
-
to bring into agreement, correspondence, or harmony (usually used withto ).
We need to conform our corporate practice to the new guidelines.
Despite efforts to conform the data sets perfectly, some discrepancies will persist.
- Synonyms:
- accommodate, adjust, adapt
-
to make similar in form, nature, or character (usually used withto ).
Do not try to conform your partner to your ideal.
adjective
verb
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to comply in actions, behaviour, etc, with accepted standards or norms
-
to be in accordance; fit in
he conforms with my idea of a teacher
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to make or become similar in character or form
-
(intr) to comply with the practices of an established church, esp the Church of England
-
(tr) to bring (oneself, ideas, etc) into harmony or agreement
Grammar
All senses of conform necessarily involve an underlying comparison of one thing or person to another. To introduce the second thing, there are two acceptable prepositions— to and with —each being more common with certain senses. When the sense has to do with one of the things being the standard or guide for the other, the most usual preposition is to: This wiring does not conform to the building code. The car seat conforms to your body. When the sense has to do with two things that independently happen to agree or match, with is more common: Your observations conform with my own experience. However, in each case, the other preposition is also correct. When the relationship between the two things is not clear, to tends to prevail: Fortunately, the weather conformed to our expectations.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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conformernoun
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preconformverb
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reconformverb
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nonconformingadjective
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quasi-conformingadjective
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unconformedadjective
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unconformingadjective
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conforminglyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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conformsimple
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conformssimple
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have conformedperfect
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has conformedperfect
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am conformingprogressive
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are conformingprogressive
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is conformingprogressive
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have been conformingperfect progressive
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has been conformingperfect progressive
Past
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conformedsimple
-
had conformedperfect
-
was conformingprogressive
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were conformingprogressive
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had been conformingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of conform
First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English confo(u)rmen, from Anglo-French, Middle French conformer, from Latin conformāre “to shape, describe, make to agree,” from con- con- + formāre “to shape, fashion” (from forma form )
Explanation
To conform means to adapt to fit in with new conditions. So if you travel to Morocco, you should conform to the local custom and adjust your usual wardrobe to one that is more modest. Sometimes conform gets a bad rap, carrying with it the sense of compromising one’s individuality to fit in or please others. But take note that it doesn’t always have to carry such a negative charge. For example, the manager of a factory that produces bouncy balls would want each ball that came off his conveyor belts to conform to a high standard of durability, bounciness, and roundness.
Vocabulary lists containing conform
Shape Up: Form
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Unit 2: Pivotal Words and Phrases
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UCPS 6th Grade Roots List #1
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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:
A spokesperson for Niello’s office said that because his previous efforts failed to gain traction, his current proposal includes a provision requiring California to conform if the federal government adopts permanent daylight saving time.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 14, 2026
To overcome those limitations, the researchers developed a powder that can conform to wounds of many different shapes and sizes.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 2, 2026
“Evolving standards of decency,” Kennedy continued, “must embrace and express respect for the dignity of the person, and the punishment of criminals must conform to that rule.”
From Slate ● Jul. 1, 2026
Bonnie’s heart lies with her toys, but she tries to conform anyway, fearing that she’ll never make a friend otherwise.
From Salon ● Jun. 21, 2026
McCandless didn’t conform particularly well to the bush-casualty stereotype.
From "Into the Wild" by Jon Krakauer
This conforms with polling, which estimates his name recognition at 6 percent.
From Slate ● May 13, 2026
That is an unlikely scenario, but one being discussed in golfing quarters - DeChambeau rarely conforms to the norm.
From BBC ● Apr. 30, 2026
Jeremy Grantham’s Wall Street career exactly conforms to this charmed sequence, but with what troubles along the way.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 9, 2026
This allowed the works to be safeguarded until the museum could reopen "in a modern format that conforms to international standards", she added.
From Barron's ● Dec. 31, 2025
It conforms to Alexander Pope’s definition of simplicity as “the mean between ostentation and rusticity.”
From "Words Like Loaded Pistols" by Sam Leith
When researchers applied a small electrical potential, the cornea gradually softened and conformed to the shape of the lens.
From Science Daily ● May 28, 2026
An SFA spokesperson said it was the darkest colour available that conformed to governing body guidelines on the contrast between home and away shirt designs.
From BBC ● Mar. 24, 2026
A majority, however, were not ideologically driven: “They simply conformed, did what was asked of them, averted their gaze from any unpleasantness.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 13, 2026
Due to its enormous economy and population, automakers have conformed to California’s rules.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 22, 2025
It is remarkable that we have all accepted this, without hooting, as though it simply conformed to a law of nature.
From "The Lives of a Cell" by Lewis Thomas
Not all of Sybylla’s experiences are upbeat or encouraging—she is constitutionally incapable of conforming, which gets her in constant trouble among the more proper circles into which she is thrust.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026
For 2026, Freddie and Fannie have a conforming limit of $832,750 for single-family home loans, though the limit can increase as much as 50% — to $1,249,125 — in certain high-cost areas.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 23, 2026
They produce conforming and compliant speech and behavior, which can have longer-term social impacts.
From Salon ● May 28, 2026
But then "people started conforming to behave in ways that would not show racism. That doesn't mean that it's now absent", she adds.
From BBC ● Apr. 24, 2026
Many of the commonest usage errors are the result of writers thinking logically when they should be mindlessly conforming to convention.
From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker
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.
