establish

verb es·tab·lish \ i-ˈsta-blish \

|Updated on: 14 Aug 2018

Examples: establish in a Sentence

Definition of establish

established; establishing; establishes

transitive verb

1 : to institute (something, such as a law) permanently by enactment or agreement

2 obsolete : settle 7

3 a : to make firm or stable

b : to introduce and cause to grow and multiply

establish grass on pasturelands

4 a : to bring into existence : found

established a republic

b : bring about, effect

established friendly relations

5 a : to put on a firm basis : set up

establish his son in business

b : to put into a favorable position

c : to gain full recognition or acceptance of

the role established her as a star

6 : to make (a church) a national or state institution

7 : to put beyond doubt : prove

established my innocence

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establishable

play \i-ˈsta-bli-shə-bəl\ adjective

—

establisher

play \i-ˈsta-bli-shər\ noun

See establish defined for English-language learners

See establish defined for kids

Examples of establish in a Sentence

The film established her as a star.
She established a reputation as a hard worker.
The word is now established as part of the English language.
The company has established itself as a leader in the industry.
As a young doctor he worked hard to establish himself in the community.
They want to establish their children in the family business.
She established a system of tracking expenses more accurately.
The two countries established a mutual trade agreement.
establishing a link between diet and cancer
Investigators are trying to establish if anyone knew about these problems before the accident.

Recent Examples of establish from the Web

Those kinds of bonding experiences can also serve to establish the coach as a trustworthy figure.

— eddie pells, The Christian Science Monitor, "Bond between players and coach may have saved Thai boy's lives," 13 July 2018
Coach Cuonzo Martin, who has been re-established the Tigers as a recruiting force in the St. Louis area, offered Liddell a scholarship more than a year ago — before even Illinois State made an offer.

— aaron reiss and alex schiffer, kansascity, "Mizzou basketball’s most-coveted 2019 prospect has a new potential suitor: Duke," 12 July 2018
Nevertheless, Trump’s mendacious allegations served to establish the righteousness of our hero’s quest.

— eric levitz, Daily Intelligencer, "Trump Ends NATO Summit by Announcing a Diplomatic Breakthrough That Did Not Happen," 12 July 2018
Online viewership is well-established: Blizzard says that the opening week of the league's inaugural season drew in 10 million viewers, though the average seems to hover in the 100-200k range during the regular season.

— eric van allen, WIRED, "Live on ESPN: Is Esports Finally Ready for Its Crossover Moment?," 11 July 2018
That is, there are elements about it that are odd, even to Canadians, whose capacity for calmly accepting unconventional things on the intake is pretty well established.

— tim goodman, The Hollywood Reporter, "Critic's Notebook: 'Letterkenny' Is the Canadian Comedy You Didn't Know You Needed," 11 July 2018
Berman and Robin agree that the university's primary objective must be to establish a prominent downtown presence.

— jeffrey barken, Jewish Journal, "Haifa's on the rise with university leading the way," 11 July 2018
County Executive Allan Kittleman signed an executive order to establish a county Opioid Crisis Community Council.

— jess nocera, Howard County Times, "Fatal overdoses down in Howard County from last year," 10 July 2018
After what should be a grueling opener against Alabama, Louisville will have to establish its offensive rhythm for the rest of the season.

— jake lourim, The Courier-Journal, "How Louisville football can (and can't) beat Indiana State," 3 July 2018

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

Origin and Etymology of establish

Middle English establissen, from Anglo-French establiss-, stem of establir, from Latin stabilire, from stabilis stable

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

establish Synonyms

ESTABLISH Defined for English Language Learners

establish

verb

Definition of establish for English Language Learners

: to cause (someone or something) to be widely known and accepted
: to put (someone or something) in a position, role, etc., that will last for a long time
: to begin or create (something that is meant to last for a long time)