Link Centre Dictionary

depend

de·pend

UK/dɪˈpɛnd/ US/dɪˈpɛnd/ common literary

verb

1.

be contingent upon (something that is ellided)

  • “That depends”
2.

have faith or confidence in

  • “you can count on me to help you any time”
  • “Look to your friends for support”
  • “You can bet on that!”
  • “Depend on your family in times of crisis”
Synonyms

Origin

From Middle English dependen, from Old French dependre and Latin dependeō, from Latin dē- + pendeō (“to hang”). In this sense, displaced native Old English hangian (“to hang or depend”).

Phrases

  • as if one's life depends on it
  • depending on
  • depends who's asking
  • it depends
  • like one's life depended on it
  • where you stand depends on where you sit

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

Narrower terms

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.