Dictionary Definition
engage
Verb
1 carry out or participate in an activity; be
involved in; "She pursued many activities"; "They engaged in a
discussion" [syn: prosecute, pursue]
2 engage or engross wholly; "Her interest in
butterflies absorbs her completely" [syn: absorb, engross, occupy]
3 engage or hire for work; "They hired two new
secretaries in the department"; "How many people has she employed?"
[syn: hire, employ] [ant: fire]
4 ask to represent; of legal counsel; "I'm
retaining a lawyer"
6 get caught; "make sure the gear is engaged"
[ant: disengage]
7 as of wars, battles, or campaigns; "Napoleon
and Hitler waged war against all of Europe" [syn: wage]
8 as of aid, help, services, or support [syn:
enlist]
9 engage for service under a term of contract;
"We took an apartment on a quiet street"; "Let's rent a car";
"Shall we take a guide in Rome?" [syn: lease, rent, hire, charter, take]
User Contributed Dictionary
English
Pronunciation
- /ɪn'geɪʤ/
- Rhymes: -eɪdʒ
Verb
- To pledge, to put something at risk or on the line.
- To guarantee or promise (to do something.)
- To bind through legal or moral obligation (to do something, especially to marry) (usually in passive)
- To engross or hold the attention of someone.
- In the context of "transitive|archaic": To fascinate or win over someone.
- To employ or obtain the services of someone.
- To reserve or arrange the use of.
- To mesh or interlock (of machinery, especially a clutch).
- To cause to mesh or interlock.
- Whenever I engage the clutch, the car stalls out.
- To enter into (an activity), to participate (construed with in).
- To keep busy or occupied.
- To attract, to draw into conversation.
- To enter into conflict with (an enemy).
- To enter into battle.
- To bring together or prepare before fighting.
- In air defense, a fire control order used to direct or authorize units and/or weapon systems to fire on a designated target. (JP 1-02 Department of Defense Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms).
- To bring the enemy under fire. (JP 1-02 Department of Defense Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms).
Antonyms
Translations
to pledge, to put something at risk or on the
line
to guarantee or promise (to do something.)
to engross or hold the attention of someone
- Finnish: pitää yllä jonkun mielenkiintoa
to fascinate or win over someone
to employ or obtain the services of someone
- Finnish: palkata
to reserve or arrange the use of something
to ensnare or physically entangle
to mesh or interlock
- Finnish: kytkeä
- Spanish: embragar
to enter into (an activity), to participate (+
in.)
to keep busy or occupied
to attract, to draw into conversation
to enter into conflict with (an enemy.)
- Czech: napadnout
- Finnish: hyökätä, ryhtyä taisteluun
to enter into battle
to bring together or prepare before fighting
In air defense, a fire control order used to
direct or authorize units and/or weapon systems to fire on a
designated target
to bring the enemy under fire
See also
French
Pronunciation
- /ɑ̃gaʒ/
Verb
engage- first-, third-person singular indicative present of engager
- first-, third-person singular sunjunctive present of engager
- second-person singular imperative of engager
Extensive Definition
Engage may refer to:
- Engagement in preparation for marriage
- Engage (organization), a UK-based political organization
- Engage (visual arts), the UK National Association for Gallery Education http://www.engage.org
- N-Gage, a smartphone and handheld game console by Nokia
- N-Gage (service), a mobile gaming service by Nokia
engage in Spanish: embragar
Synonyms, Antonyms and Related Words
absorb,
absorb the attention, accept obligation, affiance, agree, agree to, answer for,
appeal, approach, arrest, assault, assay, attack, attempt, attend to business,
attract, bargain, bargain for, battle, be answerable for, be
attractive, be responsible for, be security for, beckon, become engaged, bespeak, betroth, bind, book, brief, bring, busy, captivate, capture, carry, catch, catch up in, chance, charm, clash with, coact, combat, commit, compact, concern, contract, contract an
engagement, contract for, cooperate, covenant, decide, determine, devote, dispose, do a deal, do battle,
dovetail, draw, draw in, embark on, embarrass, employ, enchant, encounter, engage in, engage
in battle, engage the attention, engage the mind, engage the
thoughts, engross,
engross the mind, engross the thoughts, enlist, enmesh, entangle, enter into, enthrall, essay, exercise, face, fascinate, fetch, fight, get to do, give battle, go
bail for, grab, grapple
with, grip, guarantee, have an
understanding, hire,
hold, hold spellbound, hold
the interest, hypnotize, imbue, immerse, implicate, incline, indenture, induce, influence, interact, interchange, interest, interest in, interlace, interlock, intermesh, interplay, intertwine, interweave, interwork, invite, involve, involve the interest,
join battle, join battle with, join issue, lead, lift a finger, lure, make a deal, make an attempt,
make an effort, meet,
mesh, mesmerize, mind the store,
monopolize, mortise, obligate, obsess, occupy, occupy the attention,
offer, partake in,
participate in, pass, pass
the time, pledge,
plight, preengage, preoccupy, procure, promise, prompt, publish the banns, put
on, recruit, rent, reserve, retain, secure, shake hands on, sign on,
sign up, sign up for, soak,
spellbind, spend, spend the time, stipulate, strike, suck into, summon, sway, take into employment, take
on, take part in, take the vows, take up, tangle, tantalize, tease, tempt, tickle, tie, tie up, titillate, troth, try, try conclusions, undertake, venture, venture on, venture
upon, whet the
appetite