convene

play

verb con·vene \kən-ˈvēn\

Definition of convene

convened

;

convening

intransitive verb
: to come together in a body We convened at the hotel for a seminar.
transitive verb
1 : to summon before a tribunal
2 : to cause to assemble A world council was convened in Paris.

convener

convenor

play \kən-ˈvē-nər\ noun

See convene defined for English-language learners

See convene defined for kids

Examples of convene in a Sentence

We convened at the hotel for a seminar.
This class convenes twice a week.
A panel of investigators was convened by the president to review the case.

Recent Examples of convene from the Web

The city has recruited more minorities into its police force, convened interfaith groups, and commissioned a diversity and inclusion study for its recreational services.

— simon montlake, The Christian Science Monitor, "Suburbia's new face", 4 June 2017
Shaprio had appealed to the Supreme Court after a district judge said the case did not meet the standard for convening a panel of judges to review and dismissed it.

— john fritze, baltimoresun.com, "Lawsuit forces Maryland Democrats to acknowledge the obvious: Redistricting was motivated by politics", 1 June 2017
CHICAGO — Earlier this year, 30 senior citizens convened in a living room to talk about growing older and needing more help.

— judith graham, Kaiser Health News, "Putting In Place An A-Team Of Allies", 1 June 2017
Some of these mental health services for children were actually slated to be cut back in March, when the Louisiana Legislature convened a special session to approve a previous round of budget reductions.

— julia o'donoghue, NOLA.com, "Mental health services proposed for elimination in Louisiana budget", 28 May 2017
The group convened Sunday in a parking lot across from the bank building.

— lee v. gaines, chicagotribune.com, "'This is not normal': Community members gather at scene of Oak Park fatal shooting", 28 May 2017
Vance was on vacation when, on April 11, 1980, Carter and Brzezinski convened a National Security Council meeting that resulted in a green light for the attempt at rescuing the U.S. hostages held in Tehran.

— laurence arnold, Bloomberg.com, "Zbigniew Brzezinski, Security Adviser to Carter, Dies at 89", 27 May 2017
Steve Bramucci, a writer and editor at Uproxx, convened a round-table discussion about cultural appropriation for a handful of food writers.

— lisa gutierrez, kansascity, "Two white women accused of cultural appropriation shut down their Oregon burrito shop", 26 May 2017
By the time he was ordained years later, the Second Vatican Council had convened.

— catherine porter photographs and video by leslye davis, New York Times, "At His Own Wake, Celebrating Life and the Gift of Death", 25 May 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'convene'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of convene

Middle English, from Medieval Latin convenire, from Latin, to assemble — more at convenient

First Known Use: 15th century

Synonym Discussion of convene

summon, call, cite, convoke, convene, muster mean to demand the presence of. summon implies the exercise of authority. was summoned to answer charges call may be used less formally for summon . called the legislature into special session cite implies a summoning to court usually to answer a charge. cited for drunken driving convoke implies a summons to assemble for deliberative or legislative purposes. convoked a Vatican council convene is somewhat less formal than convoke . convened the students muster suggests a calling up of a number of things that form a group in order that they may be exhibited, displayed, or utilized as a whole. mustered the troops

CONVENE Defined for English Language Learners

convene

play

verb

Definition of convene for English Language Learners

: to come together in a group for a meeting

CONVENE Defined for Kids

convene

play

verb con·vene \kən-ˈvēn\

Definition of convene for Students

convened

;

convening

: to come or bring together as an assembly The legislature convened on Tuesday. The teacher convened the class.

Word Root of convene

The Latin word venīre, meaning “to come,” and its form ventus give us the roots ven and vent. Words from the Latin venīre have something to do with coming. To invent is to come up with a new idea or device that no one has thought of before. To convene is to come together for a purpose. An event is an occasion when many people come together.