provide
Americanverb (used with object)
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provides,
present (3rd person singular)
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provided,
past participle, past
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providing
present participle
verb (used without object)
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provides,
present (3rd person singular)
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provided,
past participle, past
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providing
present participle
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to take measures with due foresight (usually followed by for oragainst ).
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to make arrangements for supplying means of support, money, etc. (usually followed byfor ).
He provided for his children in his will.
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to supply means of support (often followed byfor ).
to provide for oneself.
verb
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to put at the disposal of; furnish or supply
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to afford; yield
this meeting provides an opportunity to talk
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(intr; often foll by for or against) to take careful precautions (over)
he provided against financial ruin by wise investment
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to supply means of support (to), esp financially
he provides for his family
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(in statutes, documents, etc) to determine (what is to happen in certain contingencies), esp by including a proviso condition
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to confer and induct into ecclesiastical offices
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rare to have or get in store
in summer many animals provide their winter food
Usage
Where does provide come from? For many, the word provide might conjure up tangible objects you can hand over, like food, supplies, goods, or money. Provide may also bring to mind less concrete things that can nevertheless be given or furnished, such as answers or solutions or responses. So, it might surprise you to learn that the root of provide isn’t about the sense of touch—but vision. Provide entered English around 1375–1425. It comes from the Latin prōvidēre, meaning “to foresee, look after, provide for.” The underlying idea of this verb is seeing something at a distance or beforehand, and when you can see something coming, you can make arrangements and prepare supplies for it. We call such arrangements and supplies provisions, a word that is also derived from prōvidēre. The Latin prōvidēre is composed of two parts. The first part is prō-, a widely used prefix based on the preposition prō, meaning “before, in front of.” The second part is vidēre, meaning “to see, look at.”Prō- appears in many words English borrowed from Latin, such as these verbs:
The verb vidēre is the ultimate source of a lot of English words, many of which entered English through French. Some more familiar derivatives include view, video, vision, visual, visit, and vista. Other derivatives are less obvious and even surprising:Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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providernoun
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overprovideverb (used with object)
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preprovideverb (used with object)
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providableadjective
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unprovidableadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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providesimple
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providessimple
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have providedperfect
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has providedperfect
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am providingprogressive
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are providingprogressive
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is providingprogressive
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have been providingperfect progressive
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has been providingperfect progressive
Past
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providedsimple
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had providedperfect
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was providingprogressive
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were providingprogressive
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had been providingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of provide
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English providen, Latin prōvidēre “to foresee, look after, provide for,” equivalent to prō- pro- 1 + vidēre “to see”; cf. video ( def. )
Explanation
To provide means to give or supply. When you stay in a bed and breakfast, the innkeeper will generally provide you with a meal in the morning as part of the price of the room. The verb provide generally means to make available or even to allow. The Constitution, for example, provides for protected freedom of speech. But you've probably also heard people talking about getting a job to provide for their family — in that case, to provide means to make money to pay for food and bills, or in other words, bring home the bacon.
Vocabulary lists containing provide
PARCC: Language of the Test (Grade7)
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The SAT: Language of the Test, List 5
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The SAT: Multiple-Meaning Words, List 6
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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:
Gropper is experiencing drought first hand, as the 13 natural wells across his land that provide ground water for his cattle have run dry.
From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026
The suit requests the court to order the DOJ to provide the requested unredacted records.
From Salon ● Aug. 5, 2026
Shares in the company fell 10% last week following a quarterly earnings call in which Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg declined to provide new details about the company’s discussions around establishing a cloud-computing service.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026
“Amid market concerns regarding the durability of AI spending, these comments provide some evidence that spending growth is likely to continue,” Caso said in a note to clients.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 5, 2026
In 2015, after American women soldiers stationed in Afghanistan complained that the army still did not provide boots in women’s sizes, the United States Congress suggested it might be time for a more up-to-date policy.
From "A Thousand Sisters" by Elizabeth Wein
Hospice provides care for people with terminal illnesses who have a prognosis of six months or less to live.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 5, 2026
The material combines tungsten carbide, which provides hardness, with cobalt, which acts as a metallic binder that holds the carbide particles together.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 4, 2026
Opening early learning classrooms on school campuses also provides continuity of care for young families who can build a sense of community.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026
The Equality Act provides protections for people on the grounds of both biological sex and gender reassignment.
From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026
The book was by one of his former assistants, and it provides a window into how Bertillon and Lépine thought.
From "The Mona Lisa Vanishes" by Nicholas Day
Sandals, however, are a slightly different matter as Wakeley says refined leather sandals can be entirely acceptable in many offices, provided they are clean and well maintained.
From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026
In a statement, the Justice Department said the Epstein Files Transparency Act doesn’t require “disclosure of victim-identifying information carte blanche, and New Mexico has provided no lawful basis to justify such sweeping disclosures.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026
Police provided no information Wednesday afternoon on the relationship between the suspect and the victim, whose identities have not been released.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2026
Authorities have so far provided no evidence that the suspect, Jeanine John Taele, was targeting the president.
From Barron's ● Aug. 5, 2026
The judges found “quiet, gracious young women,” the spirits provided sound demonstrations, and the charges were dropped without further investigation.
From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock
In a later update, the Sheriff's Office said the man had been transported to a hospital, adding that mental health professionals were at the scene "providing support and resources to the individual's family".
From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026
Despite providing millions of Americans with health insurance coverage for the first time, these programs had few centralized mechanisms for the kind of federal oversight that could prevent and catch fraud and abuse.
From Salon ● Aug. 5, 2026
“But we recognize that value-oriented SUVs are the heart of the market right now, providing shoppers with the right mix of attributes and usability,” Ton said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026
Vallejo City Unified board Trustee John Fox said the district was pleased to see the former school campus repurposed for early childhood, providing a much-needed service.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026
In stressing ‘discovery’ I am providing an explanation for the new cultural values of late-Renaissance Europe.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
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.
