mingle
Americanverb (used without object)
-
mingles,
present (3rd person singular)
-
mingled,
past participle, past
-
mingling
present participle
-
to become mixed, blended, or united.
The herbs and spices mingled to produce an exquisite odor that permeated the house.
-
to associate, mix, or interact in company with others, as at a social event.
At the party she mingled with some interesting people.
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to join or take part with others, as in activities or causes.
I used to like his blog, but he’s started to mingle with bigots.
verb (used with object)
-
mingles,
present (3rd person singular)
-
mingled,
past participle, past
-
mingling
present participle
-
to mix or combine; put together in a mixture; blend.
During much of history, noble families mingled their bloodlines and forged new alliances.
- Synonyms:
- intermix, intermingle, commingle
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to unite, join, or conjoin.
-
to associate in company.
a hostess who mingles diplomats with executives.
-
to form by mixing; compound; concoct.
noun
-
mingles, two or more single, unrelated adults who live together.
-
a social event at which people associate, mix, or interact with others.
The Chamber of Commerce hosted a mingle for the town's small business owners to kick off their Buy Local campaign.
verb
-
to mix or cause to mix
-
to come into close association
Synonym Usage
See mix.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
minglesimple
-
minglessimple
-
have mingledperfect
-
has mingledperfect
-
am minglingprogressive
-
are minglingprogressive
-
is minglingprogressive
-
have been minglingperfect progressive
-
has been minglingperfect progressive
Past
-
mingledsimple
-
had mingledperfect
-
was minglingprogressive
-
were minglingprogressive
-
had been minglingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of mingle
First recorded in 1425–75; Late Middle English menglen, frequentative of meng(en) “to mix,” Old English mengan; cognate with Dutch, German mengen ) + -(e)len; see origin at -le
Explanation
When things mingle, that means they mix together while still retaining their individual qualities. At a club you may hear laughter that seems to mingle with the sound of the band playing in the background. Mingle often describes abstract things, like smells or tastes or feelings. The look on your face may mingle compassion and horror when you taste your brother’s attempt at making Key Lime Pie. Mingle can also describe what you do at a social gathering when you move around a lot and talk to many different people. If you’re an outgoing person, at a party you probably like to mingle and talk to friends and also chat with new people.
Vocabulary lists containing mingle
Bless Me, Ultima
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Beowulf vocabulary
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Let's Go Caroling, 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:
Peptide parties — social gatherings where attendees mingle, chat about peptides and perhaps sample a few — have cropped up lately in San Francisco and other cities with large concentrations of the wellness-curious.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 11, 2026
Black public figures mingle with slave forts and the most vaunted creations of high art.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 20, 2026
As guests mingle in the autumn sunshine and staff put the finishing touches to the reception room, Burton hovers with her phone.
From BBC ● Oct. 18, 2026
Everything has a chance to mingle before the soup gets diluted.
From Salon ● Sep. 28, 2026
There are several high-school physics classes here, and our classmates mingle with kids from other schools, but Boy21 and I just hang silently by Mr. Franklin.
From "Boy21" by Matthew Quick
Amazon’s Jeff Bezos mingles with other guests including U.S.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 25, 2026
In my perfect version, the yolk breaks over the hot rice and mingles immediately with the lemon zest, becoming a kind of lazy hollandaise.
From Salon ● Jul. 28, 2026
Cambier mingles habitat and history, touching on the Ohlone, the European conquest, the destruction wrought by over-fishing and the resilience of Monterey pine and cypress trees.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 28, 2024
This was one of those highly orchestrated campaign stops where the president mingles with voters.
From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2024
The crackle of the fire next to them mingles with the rain pattering against the windows.
From "The Night Circus" by Erin Morgenstern
Journalists stood outside the restaurant filming through glass windows and doors as Jensen Huang and a woman identified as Alice Huang, who was wearing a pink dress, mingled with other attendees.
From Barron's ● Nov. 9, 2026
"You wouldn't know she was actually here. She just mingled amongst the crowd," he said.
From BBC ● Oct. 20, 2026
Entertainment and business figures such as actor Alfre Woodard and lawyer Skip Brittenham mingled with prominent L.A. artists, including Ed Moses, Chris Burden and Lita Albuquerque.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 22, 2026
But on Wednesday, as the clink of bottles mingled with chatter from customers, some armed with automatic weapons, the owners were defiant.
From Barron's ● Sep. 9, 2026
He could still remember the smell of the smoke mingled with pine.
From "We'll Fly Away" by Bryan Bliss
He is now actively overseeing the selective integration of the museum’s disparate collections, he said, by going against centuries-long practice here and mingling works of various media, such as paintings, sculpture and tapestries.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 6, 2026
I often opt for a more casual birthday celebration, as I’ve always felt that group dinners in restaurants are overrated and overpriced, and they’re also not optimal for mingling.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 13, 2026
There his life was devoid of high school hallmarks such as mingling and dating women, dances, and learning about the world through pop culture.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 18, 2026
The researchers describe this pattern as "increased compartment mingling."
From Science Daily ● Sep. 13, 2026
From the rear of the building cocks screeched furiously, their cries mingling with the roar of the avenue, their cries interrupted every so often by the lilting qui-qui-ri-quí of the roosters they once were.
From "When I Was Puerto Rican" by Esmeralda Santiago
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