adapt

[ uh-dapt ]
See synonyms for: adaptadaptedadapting on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object)
  1. to make suitable to requirements or conditions; adjust or modify fittingly: They adapted themselves to the change quickly.He adapted the novel for movies.

verb (used without object)
  1. to adjust oneself to different conditions, environment, etc.: to adapt easily to all circumstances.

Origin of adapt

1
First recorded in 1605–15; from Latin adaptāre “to fit, adjust,” perhaps via French adapter; see ad-, apt

synonym study For adapt

1. See adjust.

Other words for adapt

Other words from adapt

  • a·dapt·ed·ness, noun
  • mis·a·dapt, verb
  • non·a·dapt·ing, adjective
  • re·a·dapt, verb (used with object)
  • un·a·dapt·ed, adjective
  • well-a·dapt·ed, adjective

Words that may be confused with adapt

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use adapt in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for adapt

adapt

/ (əˈdæpt) /


verb
  1. (often foll by to) to adjust (someone or something, esp oneself) to different conditions, a new environment, etc

  2. (tr) to fit, change, or modify to suit a new or different purpose: to adapt a play for use in schools

Origin of adapt

1
C17: from Latin adaptāre, from ad- to + aptāre to fit, from aptus apt

Derived forms of adapt

  • adaptable, adjective
  • adaptability or adaptableness, noun
  • adaptive, adjective

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012