bring
Americanverb (used with object)
-
brings,
present (3rd person singular)
-
brought,
past participle, past
-
bringing
present participle
-
to carry, convey, conduct, or cause (someone or something) to come with, to, or toward the speaker.
Bring the suitcase to my house.
He brought his brother to my office.
-
to cause to come to or toward oneself; attract.
Her scream brought the police.
He brought honor to his family by his heroism.
-
to cause to occur or exist.
The medication brought instant relief.
-
to cause to come into a particular position, state, or effect.
to bring the car to a stop.
-
to cause to appear or occur in the mind; evoke or recall.
The letter brought her memories of youth.
-
to persuade, convince, compel, or induce.
She couldn't bring herself to sell the painting.
-
to sell for; fetch.
These lamps will bring a good price.
-
Law. to commence.
to bring an action for damages.
verb phrase
-
bring off to accomplish, carry out, or achieve (something).
He brought off his speech with ease.
-
bring forward
-
to bring to view; show.
-
to present for consideration; adduce.
to bring forward an opinion.
-
-
bring down
-
to injure, capture, or kill.
He brought down several ducks on his last hunting trip.
-
to lessen; reduce.
I won't buy that lamp unless they bring down the price.
-
Slang. to cause to be in low spirits; depress.
The bad news brought him down.
-
-
bring up
-
to care for during childhood; rear.
-
to introduce or mention for attention, discussion, action, or consideration.
-
to vomit.
-
to stop or cause to stop quickly.
to bring up a car at the curb.
-
Nautical. (of a vessel) to cause to halt, as by lowering an anchor or running aground; fetch up.
-
-
bring forth
-
to give birth to; deliver; bear.
to bring forth a son.
-
to give rise to; introduce.
to bring forth a proposal for reducing costs.
-
-
bring to
-
to bring back to consciousness; revive.
-
Nautical. to head (a vessel) close to or into the wind so as to halt.
-
-
bring on
-
to cause to happen or exist; bring about.
This incident will surely bring on a crisis.
-
to introduce; cause to appear.
Bring on the clowns.
-
-
bring in
-
to yield, as profits or income.
My part-time job doesn't bring in much, but I enjoy it.
-
to present officially; submit.
The jury brought in its verdict.
-
to cause to operate or yield.
They brought in a gusher on his property.
-
to present for consideration, approval, etc.; introduce.
She brought in six new members last month.
-
-
bring out
-
to expose; reveal.
-
to make noticeable or conspicuous in a contrast.
-
to publish, as a book or play.
-
to introduce officially into society.
to bring out a debutante.
-
-
bring about to accomplish; cause.
Land reform brought about a great change in the lives of the common people.
-
bring around / round
-
to convince of a belief or opinion; persuade.
I think we can bring him around to agreeing with the plan.
-
to restore to consciousness, as after a faint.
-
to bring as a visitor.
They brought around a new employee this morning.
-
verb
-
to carry, convey, or take (something or someone) to a designated place or person
bring that book to me
will you bring Jessica to Tom's party?
-
to cause to happen or occur to (oneself or another)
to bring disrespect on oneself
-
to cause to happen as a consequence
responsibility brings maturity
-
to cause to come to mind
it brought back memories
-
to cause to be in a certain state, position, etc
the punch brought him to his knees
-
to force, persuade, or make (oneself)
I couldn't bring myself to do it
-
to sell for; fetch
the painting brought 20 pounds
-
law
-
to institute (proceedings, charges, etc)
-
to put (evidence, etc) before a tribunal
-
-
to give birth to
-
-
to convince of
his account brought home to us the gravity of the situation
-
to place the blame on
-
-
See bear 1
Synonym Usage
Bring, fetch, take imply conveying or conducting in relation to the place where the speaker is. To bring is simply to convey or conduct: Bring it to me. I'm permitted to bring my dog here with me. It is the opposite of take, which means to convey or conduct away from the place where the speaker is: Bring it back here. Take it back there. Fetch means to go, get, and bring back: Fetch me that bottle.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
bringsimple
-
bringssimple
-
have broughtperfect
-
has broughtperfect
-
am bringingprogressive
-
are bringingprogressive
-
is bringingprogressive
-
have been bringingperfect progressive
-
has been bringingperfect progressive
Past
-
broughtsimple
-
had broughtperfect
-
was bringingprogressive
-
were bringingprogressive
-
had been bringingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of bring
First recorded before 950; Middle English bringen, Old English bringan; cognate with Dutch brengen, German bringen, Gothic briggan
Explanation
To bring something is to carry or convey it somewhere. A trained dog will bring back a stick. The verb bring "carries" the idea of conveying something. You might ask a friend to bring you to school, and you might bring your friend cookies as a thank you. You could bring a legal suit against someone, or bring yourself to do something unpleasant. Good fortune might bring you happiness, while a hunter might bring down their prey with one shot. The number seven is supposed to bring good luck. The slang expression “bring it” means to do your best.
Vocabulary lists containing bring
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:
Anything unexpectedly or especially moving, rousing, funny or strange, things that go against the grain of a production that wants to keep things controlled in order to bring the ship in on time.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 15, 2026
By Saturday, a west or south-westerly wind will bring something a little warmer with temperatures returning to above average.
From BBC ● Sep. 15, 2026
Some federal prosecutors believed there was enough evidence to bring criminal charges.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026
"And that could bring credit risk increasingly into the AI story, particularly for highly leveraged data-centre operators and lenders exposed to projects built on aggressive assumptions about future AI demand," she added.
From Barron's ● Sep. 14, 2026
“Are you waiting for an invitation? Or maybe you want to bring in a bunch of flies, too?”
From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith
This latest vehicle brings the Boston-based firm’s total assets under management to over $2.6 billion.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026
It brings together scientists from different specialties and countries to investigate some of the most difficult problems in cancer research.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 14, 2026
That brings us to the most recent, especially broad round of polygraphs in August on the same topic.
From Salon ● Sep. 14, 2026
His surname brings attention given his father's illustrious career, his fighting style guarantees excitement, and the story around him has rarely been anything other than compelling.
From BBC ● Sep. 13, 2026
She stomps around the corner of the mast and brings me something—boots, of the same make and model as her own.
From "Kwame Crashes the Underworld" by Craig Kofi Farmer
The actor thanked producers and writers of the project, as well as the technicians who brought her co-star — an octopus named Marcellus — to life.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 15, 2026
"The energy he's brought to the group already has been immense and you know I feel very privileged for us to be able to have him as a resource within our dressing room," said McCullum.
From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2026
Units rented via Airbnb represent a sliver of housing, and local bans on Airbnb haven’t brought prices down, CEO Brian Chesky said in an interview.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026
They brought together evidence that was already scattered throughout scientific research and combined it with their own consistent data set.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 14, 2026
It was not the badger’s job to understand why the Afterlife had brought her to his door.
From "The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest" by Aubrey Hartman
This will mean lower pressure will form, bringing rain and brisk winds at times, and temperatures will drop.
From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2026
In a post to X on Monday, the "Turn Back Time" singer wrote: "My dear Bob has gone up to heaven. Knowing him, he's bringing sequins, beads and his sketch pad. Good nite sweet Prince."
From Barron's ● Sep. 14, 2026
Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei over the weekend called for a slowdown in the pace of bringing out new AI models.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 14, 2026
Even if your host seems to have it all, that isn’t a reason to forgo bringing a gift.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026
A light breeze brushed my thighs, bringing up gooseflesh that I feared were as visible as hives.
From "The Red Car to Hollywood" by Jennie Liu
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.
