recommend
Americanverb (used with object)
-
recommends,
present (3rd person singular)
-
recommended,
past participle, past
-
recommending
present participle
-
to present as worthy of confidence, acceptance, use, etc.; commend; mention favorably.
to recommend an applicant for a job; to recommend a book.
- Antonyms:
- condemn
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to represent or urge as advisable or expedient.
to recommend caution.
-
to advise, as an alternative; suggest (a choice, course of action, etc.) as appropriate, beneficial, or the like.
He recommended the blue-plate special. The doctor recommended special exercises for her.
- Synonyms:
- counsel
-
to make desirable or attractive.
a plan that has very little to recommend it.
verb (used without object)
-
recommends,
present (3rd person singular)
-
recommended,
past participle, past
-
recommending
present participle
noun
verb
-
(may take a clause as object or an infinitive) to advise as the best course or choice; counsel
to recommend prudence
-
to praise or commend
to recommend a new book
-
to make attractive or advisable
the trip has little to recommend it
-
archaic to entrust (a person or thing) to someone else's care; commend
Usage
Spelling tips for recommend The word recommend is hard to spell because it is tricky to know whether the c, the m, and/or the n is doubled. How to spell recommend: The easiest way to remember how to spell recommend is to break it into three parts: re - com - mend. You can keep these three sections in mind with the sentence: "I recommend that you rely commonly on mending."
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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recommendernoun
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prerecommendverb (used with object)
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recommendableadjective
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unrecommendableadjective
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unrecommendedadjective
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well-recommendedadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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recommendsimple
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recommendssimple
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have recommendedperfect
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has recommendedperfect
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am recommendingprogressive
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are recommendingprogressive
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is recommendingprogressive
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have been recommendingperfect progressive
-
has been recommendingperfect progressive
Past
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recommendedsimple
-
had recommendedperfect
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was recommendingprogressive
-
were recommendingprogressive
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had been recommendingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of recommend
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English recommenden, from Medieval Latin recommendāre; equivalent to re- + commend
Explanation
If you recommend a person or thing is to vouch for them. Recommend can also be to advise. If your doctor recommended an exercise program to you that's changed your life, you might recommend your doctor to your friends. Recommend is connected to the verb commend "to praise." They are both spelled with one c and two m's, reflecting the prefixes re- and com-. These verbs overlap in some uses: you can recommend or commend an applicant for employment. But commend is used for special or public praise: "He was commended for bravery."
Vocabulary lists containing recommend
"the insanity of selling junk food"
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Excerpt from "Bad Boy"
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Encourage
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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:
If your vehicle doesn’t come with a set, I recommend finding a cable with a thick gauge, good insulation, durable clamps, and a good length.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 20, 2026
Doctors recommend that GLP-1 users increase their protein intake to stave off the muscle loss that comes with rapid calorie cutting.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026
I highly recommend skipping Google, skipping ChatGPT, and going straight to INeedAnA.com.”
From Salon ● Aug. 19, 2026
The admin emails to which Microsoft sent those notifications tend to get slammed with junk from spammers, leading software developers to recommend ignoring those inboxes altogether.
From Slate ● Aug. 18, 2026
“Could you recommend a good book for a girl?” asked Francie.
From "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" by Betty Smith
Instead, she recommends getting a product "80% of the way there", launching it and improving it as you go - like she did with Little Moons.
From BBC ● Aug. 19, 2026
Meanwhile Dr Kathleen O'Reilly at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine recommends checking out food hygiene ratings when deciding on cafes or restaurants.
From BBC ● Aug. 19, 2026
If a figeater beetle ends up in your house, Windbiel-Rojas recommends gently putting it back outside.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026
Timothy James, 38, who recommends stocks and offers market predictions on TikTok and Substack, has recently posted videos claiming the market is approaching a peak and predicting a meltdown in the future.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026
When starting, she recommends accepting and reinforcing behaviors that come close to the desired behavior.
From "Music and the Child" by Natalie Sarrazin
Which makes the moment when we still have to ask ourselves what sounds good feel increasingly precious: a little unoptimized space before something has been recommended, queued or dropped into a cart for us.
From Salon ● Aug. 20, 2026
The European Medicines Agency reassessed the data and recommended in July that the drug be stripped of its market authorisation.
From Barron's ● Aug. 19, 2026
Hugo Boss’s managing and supervisory boards unanimously recommended that shareholders reject the offer, saying it undervalued the group and its standalone prospects.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026
She has also recommended referrals which currently go to Prevent should go through a local multi-agency safeguarding team - which should include counter-terror police where needed.
From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026
Wergin already had some idea about Haupt's situation because Haupt had recommended Wergin as a potential candidate to Kappe.
From Nazi Saboteurs by Samantha Seiple
The committee can take a wide range of actions if it substantiates the allegations in an investigation, including recommending that a member be reprimanded, censured or removed, or referring the conduct to the U.S.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2026
My financial adviser is recommending Roth conversions, but I’m a retired CPA, and based on my projections, I don’t expect my marginal tax rate to be materially different in the future.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 15, 2026
Others have been quoting Clement Attlee, recommending "a period of silence".
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026
His videos don’t stop at recommending where to eat.
From Salon ● Aug. 6, 2026
On August 11, he drafted a memo to John Ehrlichman recommending: “A covert operation be undertaken to examine all the medical files still held by Ellsberg’s psychoanalyst.”
From "Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War" by Steve Sheinkin
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.
