involved

1 of 2

adjective

in·​volved in-ˈvälvd 

-ˈvȯlvd

also -ˈvävd

or -ˈvȯvd

1

a

: having a part in something : included in something

unable to identify those who were involved

She was involved in a lawsuit.

b

: actively participating in something

an involved citizen active in local politics

c

: having a romantic or sexual relationship

warned her not to get romantically involved

2

a

: marked by extreme and often needless or excessive complexity

a long and involved story

b

: difficult to deal with because of complexity or disorder

Her husband had been extravagant; and at his death … had left his affairs dreadfully involved.

—Jane Austen

3

: being affected or implicated

… dealing with … the most severely involved patients …

—R. J. Thomas

4

obsolete : involute, twisted

involvedly

in-ˈväl-vəd-lē 

-ˈvȯl-

also -ˈvä-vəd-

or -ˈvȯ-

adverb

involved

2 of 2

past tense and past participle of involve

Synonyms of involved

Adjective

• complicated
• complicate
• intricate
• complex
• sophisticated

Choose the Right Synonym for involved

complex, complicated, intricate, involved, knotty mean having confusingly interrelated parts.

complex suggests the unavoidable result of a necessary combining and does not imply a fault or failure.

a complex recipe

complicated applies to what offers great difficulty in understanding, solving, or explaining.

complicated legal procedures

intricate suggests such interlacing of parts as to make it nearly impossible to follow or grasp them separately.

an intricate web of deceit

involved implies extreme complication and often disorder.

a rambling, involved explanation

knotty suggests complication and entanglement that make solution or understanding improbable.

knotty ethical questions

Examples of involved in a Sentence

Adjective

a long and involved story

The instructions for assembling the toy are very involved.

The process is quite involved.

Those of us who were involved knew exactly what happened.

Students who stay involved get more out of the program.

If you want to make things better, you need to get involved.

They quickly became romantically involved.

No one knew that they were involved.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Bogues’ wife and his three kids were all involved in Saturday’s surprise, arranging to be there when Bogues heard the news. — Scott Fowler, Charlotte Observer, 27 Oct. 2026

Police said the man’s parole officer identified him as a person in surveillance photos that captured the involved vehicle shortly before the shooting, police said. — Nathan Pilling, Kansas City Star, 27 Oct. 2026

Bank of America, Citigroup, Morgan Stanley, and Blackstone are all involved. — Jim Cramer, CNBC, 27 Oct. 2026

His sons are all involved in the family business, as members of the board and in various executive roles. — Martino Carrera, Footwear News, 26 Oct. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

from past participle of involve

First Known Use

Adjective

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 4

Phrases Containing involved

• self-involved

Rhymes for involved

• redissolved
• undissolved
• uninvolved
• unresolved
• absolved
• devolved
• dissolved
• evolved
• resolved
• revolved
• unsolved
• solved

Kids Definition

involved

adjective

in·​volved

: very complicated

a long and involved story