Definition of 'find'
Word forms: plural, 3rd person singular present tense finds
, present participle finding
, past tense, past participle found
1. verb
If you find someone or something, you see them or learn where they are.
[Also VERB noun + for] 4. verb
If you find someone or something in a particular situation, they are in that situation when you
see them or come into contact with them.
Thrushes are a protected species so you will not find them on any menu. [VERB noun preposition/adverb]
5. verb
It's not the first time that you've found yourself in this situation. [VERB pronoun-reflexive preposition/adverb]
6. verb [no passive, no cont]
If a time or event finds you in a particular situation, you are in that situation at the time mentioned or when the event occurs.
[written]
7. verb
If you find that something is the case, you become aware of it or realize that it is the case.
The two biologists found, to their surprise, that both groups of birds survived equally
well. [VERB that]
8. verb
9. verb
You can use find to express your reaction to someone or something.
I find it ludicrous that nothing has been done to protect passengers from fire. [VERB noun adjective]
10. verb
11. verb
If you find the time or money to do something, you succeed in making or obtaining enough time or money to do it.
12. countable noun [usually adjective NOUN]
14.
See find one's way
15.
Phrasal verbs:
See find out
Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
British English pronunciation
American English pronunciation
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Word Frequency
find in British English
verbWord forms: finds, finding, found (faʊnd
) (mainly tr)
4. (may take a clause as object)
to regard as being; consider
I find this wine a little sour
6. (also intr) law
the court found the accused guilty
10.
to be able to pay
I can't find that amount of money
11. See find oneself
12. See find one's feet
Collins English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Derived forms
findable (ˈfindable) adjective
Word origin
Old English findan; related to Old Norse finna, Gothic finthan, Old High German fintan to find
Word Frequency
find in American English
verb transitiveWord forms: found or ˈfinding
1.
to happen on; come upon; meet with; discover by chance
5.
b.
to get or recover the use of
we found our sea legs
Idioms:
Webster’s New World College Dictionary, 4th Edition. Copyright © 2010 by
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.
Word origin
ME finden < OE findan, akin to Ger finden, Goth finthan < IE base *pent-, to walk, happen upon, find > L pons, a plank causeway, bridge
Word Frequency
find in American English
(faind) (verb found, finding)
transitive verb
1.
to come upon by chance; meet with
He found a nickel in the street
5.
to gain or regain the use of
His anger finally helped him find his tongue
7.
to feel or perceive
He finds it so
8.
to become aware of, or discover (oneself), as being in a condition or location
After a long illness, he found himself well again
She woke to find herself at home
9.
to discover
Columbus found America in 1492
10. Law
a.
to determine after judicial inquiry
to find a person guilty
b.
to pronounce as an official act (an indictment, verdict, or judgment)
11.
to provide or furnish
Bring blankets and we'll find the rest of the equipment for the trip
intransitive verb
13.
to determine an issue after judicial inquiry
The jury found for the plaintiff
14. Hunting Brit
to come upon game
15. See find fault
16. See find oneself
17. See find out
noun
SYNONYMS 2. achieve, win, earn, acquire.18.
an act of finding or discovering
Most material © 2005, 1997, 1991 by Penguin Random House LLC. Modified entries © 2019
by Penguin Random House LLC and HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
Derived forms
findable adjective
Word origin
[bef. 900; ME finden, OE findan; c. G finden, D vinden, ON finna, Goth finthan]Examples of 'find' in a sentence
find
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Quotations
finders keepers
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find
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In other languages
find
British English: find
/faɪnd/ VERB
If you find someone or something, you see them or learn where they are.
I can't find my shoes.
- American English: find /ˈfaɪnd/
- Arabic: يَجِدُ
- Brazilian Portuguese: encontrar
- Chinese: 找到
- Croatian: naći
- Czech: najít
- Danish: finde
- Dutch: vinden
- European Spanish: encontrar
- Finnish: löytää
- French: trouver
- German: finden
- Greek: βρίσκω
- Italian: trovare
- Japanese: 見つける
- Korean: 찾다
- Norwegian: finne
- Polish: znaleźć
- European Portuguese: encontrar
- Romanian: a găsi
- Russian: находить
- Latin American Spanish: encontrar
- Swedish: hitta
- Thai: หา
- Turkish: bulmak aradığı bir şeyi
- Ukrainian: знаходити
- Vietnamese: tìm thấy
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find
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Definition of find from the Collins English Dictionary
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