Appropriate Definition & Meaning | Britannica Dictionary (original) (raw)

Britannica Dictionary definition of APPROPRIATE

[more appropriate; most appropriate]

:

right or suited for some purpose or situation

• It's a formal occasion and appropriate attire/dress/clothing is expected. [=you are expected to wear formal clothing]
• Red wine would have been a more appropriate choice with the meal.
• We'll need to find an appropriate [=_suitable_] place to store the fuel.
• Do you think the movie is appropriate for small children (to see)? = Do you think it's appropriate for small children to see the movie?
• The movie is perfectly/entirely appropriate to/for people of all ages.

— opposite inappropriate

• The dinner is formal, so please dress appropriately.
• She met her husband, appropriately enough, at a wedding.

— appropriateness

noun

[noncount]

• He questioned the appropriateness of the movie for young children.

Britannica Dictionary definition of APPROPRIATE

[+ object]

1

:

to get or save (money) for a specific use or purpose

• The town has appropriated funds to repair the bridge and work should begin this summer.

2

:

to take or use (something) especially in a way that is illegal, unfair, etc.

• The economy has been weakened by corrupt officials who have appropriated the country's resources for their own use.
• Elements of the design were appropriated from other architects.
• The term “bad” has been appropriated by teenagers as a synonym for “good.”

— compare misappropriate