# appropriate

/əˈpɹoʊpɹiˌeɪt/ (US)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/appropriate
Updated: 2026-06-19

## Senses

### 1. suitable or right

adjective · CEFR B2

right or suitable for a particular situation, person, or use.

For teachers: suitable or proper in the circumstances; socially or functionally correct.

- It is important to wear appropriate clothes when you go for a job interview.
- The manager decided that a formal written warning was the most appropriate response to the repeated safety violations.

Usage: Often followed by the preposition 'for' or 'to'.

### 2. to take without permission

verb · CEFR C1 · Formal

to take something for your own use, usually without the owner's permission.

For teachers: to take something for one's own use, typically without the owner's permission or legal right.

- The company was accused of trying to appropriate land that belonged to the local people.
- The rebels were quick to appropriate the abandoned military vehicles to bolster their own transport capabilities.

Usage: This is a transitive verb and requires a direct object.

### 3. to set money aside

verb · CEFR C1 · Academic · Formal

to officially decide that an amount of money will be used for a specific purpose.

For teachers: to devote money or assets to a special purpose, often through a formal legislative or corporate process.

- The government will appropriate five million dollars for the new hospital wing.
- The committee voted to appropriate additional funds for the urban renewal project after the initial budget proved insufficient.

Usage: Commonly used in government, legal, and accounting contexts.

## Examples

- The committee will appropriate funds for the new park next month.
- The local government decided to appropriate the abandoned land to build a community center for the neighborhood.
- Critics argued that the fashion house began to appropriate traditional patterns from indigenous communities without offering any form of compensation or recognition of their cultural significance.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.