depend

verb

de·pend | \ di-ˈpend

depended; depending; depends

Definition of depend

1 : to be determined, based, or contingent (see contingent entry 1 sense 1) life depends on food the value of Y depends on X

2 : to be pending or undecided matters of greatest moment were depending— John Milton

3a : to place reliance or trust you can depend on me

b : to be dependent especially for financial support Her family depends on her paycheck. still depends on his parents

4 : to hang down a star was depending from his neck— Arnold Bennett

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Examples of depend in a Sentence

whether or not we play baseball will depend on how much rain we get I know I can always depend on you for help when I really need it.

Recent Examples on the Web

An abnormal Pap smear indicates changes in the cervical cells usually caused by HPV, and depending upon what type of abnormal cells your doctor finds, you may be tested to confirm HPV was the cause. 2. — Amy Marturana, SELF, "5 STDs You Can Have Without Knowing It," 28 Dec. 2018 Ultimately, how efficiently a cat grooms depends upon how deeply the papillae can penetrate the fur to reach the skin underneath the cat's topcoat and undercoat. — Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, "Science says your cat’s tongue is ideally suited for grooming fur," 28 Dec. 2018 The company’s survival in wartime depends upon strict adherence and alignment to the mission. — Casey Newton, The Verge, "How Mark Zuckerberg became a wartime CEO," 20 Nov. 2018 First, the one in five women in America who have been to Planned Parenthood, who depend upon the organization for life-saving health care, gave me courage that day. — Cecile Richards, Glamour, "Cecile Richards: I Testified Before Congress. Here's What I Want Dr. Christine Blasey Ford to Know.," 26 Sep. 2018 The tapes could embarrass Mr. Kraft but also may torpedo the state’s case, depending on whether Judge Leonard Hanser decides to allow the video to be used as evidence in Mr. Kraft’s upcoming trial. — Andrew Beaton, WSJ, "How Challenges Over Robert Kraft Spa Video May Hamper Prosecutors’ Case," 25 Apr. 2019 The theory also depends on whether the Stark bodies are buried at Winterfell all. — Erica Gonzales, Harper's BAZAAR, "There's a Crazy Theory Explaining Why Arya Stark Was Running in the Game of Thrones Season 8 Trailer," 8 Mar. 2019 Most of our scientific evidence about how the world works—evidence about climate change or vaccinations, for example—comes to us in a much more roundabout way and depends on a long chain of testimony and trust. — Alison Gopnik, WSJ, "Young Children Make Good Scientists," 14 Feb. 2019 In fact, this type of work typically lasts only six months to two years, depending in part on your skin type, sun exposure, the artist, the ink, and even the tools. — Monica Corcoran Harel, Marie Claire, "What Is Cosmetic Tattooing? Read This Before You Get One," 29 Mar. 2019

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

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Last Updated

19 May 2019

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Time Traveler for depend

The first known use of depend was in the 15th century

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More Definitions for depend

depend

verb

English Language Learners Definition of depend

informal —used in speech in phrases like it depends and that depends to say that the answer to a question will be different in different situations

See the full definition for depend in the English Language Learners Dictionary

depend

verb

de·pend | \ di-ˈpend

depended; depending

Kids Definition of depend

: to be subject to determination by the situation Are you going to the party? I don't know. It depends.

depend on

1 : to rely for support Children depend on their parents.

2 : to be determined by or based on a person, action, or condition The people had been very proud … that victory or defeat depended on them.— Theodore Taylor, The Cay