transform

American  

[trans-fawrm, trans-fawrm] / trænsˈfɔrm, ˈtræns fɔrm /

verb (used with object)

• transforms,
  present (3rd person singular)
• transformed,
  past participle,  past
• transforming
  present participle

1. 

   to change in form, appearance, or structure; metamorphose.

   Synonyms:

   transfigure

2. to change in condition, nature, or character; convert.

3. to change into another substance; transmute.

4. Electricity.

   1. to increase or decrease (the voltage and current characteristics of an alternating-current circuit), as by means of a transformer.

   2. to decrease (the voltage and current characteristics of a direct-current circuit), as by means of a transformer.

5. Mathematics. to change the form of (a figure, expression, etc.) without in general changing the value.

6. Physics. to change into another form of energy.

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verb (used without object)

• transforms,
  present (3rd person singular)
• transformed,
  past participle,  past
• transforming
  present participle

1. to undergo a change in form, appearance, or character; become transformed.

noun

1. Mathematics.

   1. a mathematical quantity obtained from a given quantity by an algebraic, geometric, or functional transformation.

   2. the transformation itself.

2. the result of a transformation.

3. a transformation.

4. Logic. transformation.

5. Linguistics. a structure derived by a transformation.

transform British  

verb

1. to alter or be altered radically in form, function, etc

2. (tr) to convert (one form of energy) to another form

3. (tr) maths to change the form of (an equation, expression, etc) by a mathematical transformation

4. (tr) to increase or decrease (an alternating current or voltage) using a transformer

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noun

1. maths the result of a mathematical transformation, esp (of a matrix or an element of a group) another related to the given one by B = X ^–1 AX for some appropriate X

Synonym Usage

Transform , convert mean to change one thing into another. Transform suggests changing from one form, appearance, structure, or type to another: to transform soybeans into oil and meal by pressure. Convert suggests so changing the characteristics as to change the use or purpose: to convert a barn into a house.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• retransform
  verb (used with object)
• intertransformable
  adjective
• nontransforming
  adjective
• self-transformed
  adjective
• transformable
  adjective
• transformative
  adjective
• untransformable
  adjective
• untransformed
  adjective
• untransforming
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• transforming
  present
• transformed
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• transform
  simple
• transforms
  simple
• have transformed
  perfect
• has transformed
  perfect
• am transforming
  progressive
• are transforming
  progressive
• is transforming
  progressive
• have been transforming
  perfect progressive
• has been transforming
  perfect progressive

Past

• transformed
  simple
• had transformed
  perfect
• was transforming
  progressive
• were transforming
  progressive
• had been transforming
  perfect progressive

Future

• will transform
  simple
• will have transformed
  perfect
• will be transforming
  progressive
• will have been transforming
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of transform

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English transformen, from Latin trānsfōrmāre “to change in shape”; see trans-, form

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Explanation

When you transform you change from one thing or state to another. Picture a transformer that changes from a robot to a car. Simple, right? Caterpillars transform into butterflies, a forest is transformed by a snowfall, and a city can be transformed by a new government or a changing economy. Transform means a big change in appearance or in essence. The Internet has transformed how we live our day-to-day lives, but you wouldn't say that moving a throw pillow has transformed your living room.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

transform transforms transformed transforming

"AI will transform daily life: every firm, community, hospital, school, and every aspect of our economy can benefit," John Healey said.

From BBC ● Oct. 24, 2026

Gray starred as Billy Batson, a teenager who could transform into a grown-up superhero by saying the magic word “Shazam!”

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 23, 2026

The technology could also transform food testing, industrial quality control, and environmental monitoring.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 23, 2026

In the decades that followed, he helped transform U.S. retail by building shopping centers across America, starting with strip malls and moving onto giant projects such as the Mall of America.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 21, 2026

I expect him to leave, or perhaps transform into one of the nurses again, but instead he pulls up a chair and sits down.

From "Challenger Deep" by Neal Shusterman

Automation enables "inquiries that were not previously possible; it transforms the conditions of research."

From Barron's ● Oct. 16, 2026

Professor Jaeyune Ryu, who supervised the research, said, "This study transforms 'local pH' near the electrode from a hidden variable into a controllable design principle."

From Science Daily ● Oct. 12, 2026

Mona transforms before our eyes from a diffident mother of two in an unhappy marriage into the star she always could be, though not without a few bumps in the road.

From Salon ● Oct. 12, 2026

There is a case that it could be, if AI joins labor and capital as a third factor of production—if, in other words, it completely transforms the economy.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026

It was the sort of snow that transforms the world around it into a different kind of place.

From "Breadcrumbs" by Anne Ursu

During that relatively short period, Switzerland has lost nearly 20% of its total glacier ice volume, illustrating just how quickly the country's mountain landscapes are being transformed.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 23, 2026

The invasion quickly transformed their work, says another ex-European ambassador; the co-operation required for their usual efforts on bilateral relations, trade and joint projects was now impossible.

From BBC ● Oct. 22, 2026

After the start of the war, staff quickly transformed the underground space -- initially meant to welcome a music school.

From Barron's ● Oct. 21, 2026

The hypnotic hook on “I Give Everything I Have 2 U” comes from a late-’60s soul obscurity, and then the singers’ voices are clipped into tiny fragments and transformed into a bouncing rhythm.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 20, 2026

Cassano nevertheless agreed to meet with all the big Wall Street firms and discuss the logic of their deals—to investigate how a bunch of shaky loans could be transformed into triple-A-rated bonds.

From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis

In some ways, Las Vegas is a funny fit for the Queen of Hip-Hop Soul, who’s been transforming pain into music since her 1992 debut, “What’s the 411?”

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 23, 2026

Longer term, Xi envisions transforming Xinjiang into a massive new gateway for Chinese exports.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2026

The 2025 winners included Lagos Fashion Week, for "transforming one of the world's most wasteful industries" by requiring designers to demonstrate their commitment to sustainability.

From BBC ● Oct. 22, 2026

In his eyes, beauty takes all forms, morphing into the grotesque and outrageous before transforming again into a light, airy meringue, generously portioned atop life’s dense realities.

From Salon ● Oct. 22, 2026

“Yes. Precisely. Or someone could have some kind of magical hold on this person, like spiritual blackmail. Or maybe they’re in the process of transforming into something else.”

From "Breadcrumbs" by Anne Ursu

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Related Words

• alter
• convert
• mold
• mutate
• reconstruct
• remodel
• revamp
• revolutionize
• transfer
• translate

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