send
1 Americanverb (used with object)
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to cause, permit, or enable to go.
to send a messenger; They sent their son to college.
- Antonyms:
- receive
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to cause to be conveyed or transmitted to a destination.
to send a letter.
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to order, direct, compel, or force to go.
The president sent troops to Asia.
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to direct, propel, or deliver to a particular point, position, condition, or direction.
to send a punch to the jaw; The punch sent the fighter reeling.
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to emit, discharge, or utter (usually followed by off, out, orthrough ).
The lion sent a roar through the jungle.
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to cause to occur or befall.
The people beseeched Heaven to send peace to their war-torn village.
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Electricity.
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to transmit (a signal).
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to transmit (an electromagnetic wave or the like) in the form of pulses.
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Slang. to delight or excite.
Frank Sinatra's records used to send her.
verb (used without object)
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to dispatch a messenger, agent, message, etc.
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Electricity. to transmit a signal.
The ship's radio sends on a special band of frequencies.
verb phrase
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send out
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to distribute; issue.
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to send on the way; dispatch.
They sent out their final shipment last week.
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to order delivery.
We sent out for coffee.
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send in to cause to be dispatched or delivered to a destination.
Send in your contest entries to this station.
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send off to cause to depart or to be conveyed from oneself; dispatch; dismiss.
His teacher sent him off to the principal's office.
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send forth
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to produce; bear; yield.
plants sending forth new leaves.
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to dispatch out of a country as an export.
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to issue, as a publication.
They have sent forth a report to the stockholders.
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to emit or discharge.
The flowers sent forth a sweet odor.
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send for to request the coming or delivery of; summon.
If her temperature goes up, send for the doctor.
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send down to expel, especially from Oxford or Cambridge.
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send up
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to release or cause to go upward; let out.
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Informal. to sentence or send to prison.
He was convicted and sent up for life.
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to expose the flaws or foibles of through parody, burlesque, caricature, lampoon, or other forms of satire.
The new movie sends up merchants who commercialize Christmas.
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idioms
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send packing, to dismiss curtly; send away in disgrace.
The cashier was stealing, so we sent him packing.
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send round, to circulate or dispatch widely.
Word was sent round about his illness.
verb (used without object)
verb
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(tr) to cause or order (a person or thing) to be taken, directed, or transmitted to another place
to send a letter
she sent the salesman away
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to dispatch a request or command (for something or to do something)
he sent for a bottle of wine
he sent to his son to come home
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(tr) to direct or cause to go to a place or point
his blow sent the champion to the floor
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(tr) to bring to a state or condition
this noise will send me mad
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(tr; often foll by forth, out, etc) to cause to issue; emit
his cooking sent forth a lovely smell from the kitchen
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(tr) to cause to happen or come
misery sent by fate
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to transmit (a message) by radio, esp in the form of pulses
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slang (tr) to move to excitement or rapture
this music really sends me
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to dismiss or get rid of someone
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to dismiss or get rid of (someone) peremptorily
noun
verb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of send
First recorded before 900; Middle English senden, Old English sendan; cognate with German senden, Gothic sandjan; akin to Old English sīth “journey,” sand “message, messenger”
Explanation
When you get something to end up at a destination, you send it. You can send an email, send a package, or even send a student to the dean's office. You can send a message in a letter or in an email, or you can send a rocket up into the air. You can also send a person somewhere: "My parents used to send me to camp every summer." If you kick someone out, you send them packing: "If my roommate whistles that song one more time, I swear I'll send her packing." And if you're really irritated, you might even send them flying, or knock them down.
Vocabulary lists containing send
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:
In one of those calls, she mentioned the clip and said, “Can I send it to you or get it in front of your eyes?,” and he said sure.
From Slate ● Aug. 6, 2026
Now, one prominent economist is warning that the specific methods used by the Treasury and Federal Reserve to help prop up the struggling yen send a troubling message about the status of the greenback.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 6, 2026
Victory over two legs would see them qualify for the league phase, while defeat would send them into the Conference League.
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026
Paul, the committee's chairman, has signaled he intends to send the panel's recommendation straight to the Justice Department, which can decide whether to take the case.
From Barron's ● Aug. 6, 2026
I snap a picture and send it to Celia, who replies with a series of heart-eye and fire emojis.
From "Keeping Pace" by Laurie Morrison
You could think of it as the drone warfare of diplomacy, which is, instead of sending infantry in the normal way to do it and shooting up howitzers, you’re trying different approaches.
From Slate ● Aug. 6, 2026
At least two brokerages are still sending emails and text messages, reviewed by the Journal, to prospective investors offering access to Anthropic’s stock via SPVs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026
Officials from the Montrose Search and Rescue reminded hikers to carry a satellite emergency communication device or other GPS messenger capable of sending their exact location.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2026
However, those positions can quickly reverse if the situation changes, sending stocks lower.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 5, 2026
Immediately it began to fly apart, sending her and Livingston tumbling.
From "Wolfie & Fly" by Cary Fagan
Late Stage didn’t respond to repeated requests for comment, including to executives and to lawyers representing the firm in a class-action lawsuit, or to questions sent to the company’s main email address.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026
Many people sent me that tweet, and it’s completely true to herself.
From Slate ● Aug. 6, 2026
Chipotle on Wednesday said that it had identified jalapenos from a grower in Sinaloa, Mexico that were distributed by Coast Citrus Distributors, and said it removed the peppers from the restaurants where they were sent.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 6, 2026
EasyJet recently said its net profits had plunged in the third quarter as the Middle East war sent jet fuel prices soaring.
From Barron's ● Aug. 6, 2026
“I am very thirsty, fox! And you sent me toward the wrong light! Again!”
From "The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest" by Aubrey Hartman
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.
