verb
conjugate
KON-juh-gayt (verb), KON-juh-guht (adjective, noun)
Conjugate (verb) means to give the different forms of a verb according to person, number, tense, mood and voice. Example: “Spanish learners spend weeks conjugating irregular verbs.”
verb
1
grammar To give the different forms of a verb according to person, number, tense, mood and voice.
"Spanish learners spend weeks conjugating irregular verbs."
"Can you conjugate "to be" in the past tense?"
2
Of a verb, to have those different forms.
""Go" conjugates irregularly in the past tense."
adjective
1
technical Joined together, especially as a pair with a shared relationship. Used in mathematics of numbers or expressions that differ only in the sign of one part, and in chemistry of a joined compound.
"The conjugate of 3 + 2i is 3 − 2i."
"Researchers attached the drug to an antibody to form a conjugate molecule."
How to use conjugate
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishTo change a verb's form to fit who is doing it and when.
When to use it
The grammar sense is everyday in language teaching; the mathematical and chemical senses are technical.
Memory tip
Note the stress shift: the verb ends in a full "-gate" sound, the adjective and noun in a weaker "-gut".
Trace the full origin ↓
Easily confused with
Common pairings
conjugate a verb
conjugated in the present tense
complex conjugate
conjugate acid
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Fill the gap
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Can you _____ "to be" in the past tense?
Etymology
From Latin conjugatus, past participle of conjugare "to yoke together", from com- "together" and jugum "yoke".
Synonyms
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conjugated
coupled
Related words
Rhymes for conjugate
See all rhymes for conjugate →Frequently asked questions
What does it mean to conjugate a verb?
It means listing or producing the verb's forms as they change with the subject and the tense: I go, he goes, they went. In heavily inflected languages such as Spanish, Italian or Latin, each tense has a distinct ending for every person, so conjugation is a long list; English verbs change far less.
What is the difference between conjugation and declension?
Conjugation is the set of forms a verb takes. Declension is the set of forms a noun, pronoun or adjective takes for case, number and gender. Verbs conjugate, nouns decline.
What is a conjugate in maths?
Most often the complex conjugate, formed by changing the sign of the imaginary part: the conjugate of a + bi is a − bi. The same idea applies to surds, where the conjugate of 2 + √5 is 2 − √5, a trick used to clear roots from a denominator.
What is the meaning of conjugate?
"conjugate" (verb) means to give the different forms of a verb according to person, number, tense, mood and voice.
