What does "involve" mean?

1. (to include or require) to have something as a necessary part or result. 2. (to participate or engage) to make someone take part in something or to become connected to a situation. 3. (to complicate or entangle) to make something complicated or to get someone into a difficult situation. 4. (to raise to a power) to multiply a number by itself several times.

How do you use "involve"?

Takes a noun phrase or a gerund (-ing form) as a direct object. Often used in the passive voice ('be involved in') or with a reflexive pronoun.

Is it correct to say "The job involves to travel a lot."?

No — say "The job involves travelling a lot.". When 'involve' is followed by another action, use the -ing form (gerund), not the infinitive.

involve

US //ˌɪnˈvɑɫv// UK //ɪnvˈɒlv// in·volve

1 to include or require (v.)
A2 Elementary

to have something as a necessary part or result.

to include something as a constituent part or as a necessary consequence of an action.

Example

The new project will involve a lot of hard work from everyone on the team.

Example

The proposed expansion of the railway network will necessarily involve significant capital investment and years of environmental impact assessments.

Usage

Takes a noun phrase or a gerund (-ing form) as a direct object.
- exclude
Pitfall

The job involves to travel a lot.

The job involves travelling a lot.

When 'involve' is followed by another action, use the -ing form (gerund), not the infinitive.
2 to participate or engage (v.)
B1 Intermediate

to make someone take part in something or to become connected to a situation.

to cause someone to participate in an activity or to become implicated in a situation.

Example

We want to involve as many students as possible in the school play.

Example

The investigators were careful not to involve innocent bystanders in the high-profile legal dispute until they had gathered sufficient evidence.

Usage

Often used in the passive voice ('be involved in') or with a reflexive pronoun.
- exclude
- detach

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3 to complicate or entangle (v.)
C1 Advanced Formal Literary

to make something complicated or to get someone into a difficult situation.

to entangle or implicate someone or something in a confusing or troublesome situation.

Example

He didn't want to get involved in his neighbors' private arguments.

Example

The diplomat feared that a single misstep would involve the entire region in a protracted and unnecessary conflict.
- entangle
- embroil
- mix up
- extricate
4 to raise to a power (v.)
C2 Proficiency Archaic Technical Math

to multiply a number by itself several times.

to multiply a quantity by itself a specified number of times; to raise to a power.

Example

In the old manuscript, the scholar explained how to involve the number to the third degree.

Example

The treatise detailed an early algebraic method to involve the variable before calculating the final sum of the series.

Teacher's tip

This mathematical sense is largely obsolete in modern textbooks, which prefer 'raise to the power of'.
- power
- exponentiate

Origin

PIE word *h₁én From Late Middle English involven (“to cloud; to encumber; to envelop, surround; to ponder (something); (reflexive) to concern (oneself) with something”) [and other forms], borrowed from Old French involver, envoudre, or from its etymon Latin involvere, the present active infinitive of Latin involvō (“to roll to or upon something; to roll about; to coil or curl up; to cover; to envelop, wrap up; to overwhelm”), from in- (prefix meaning ‘in, inside, within’) + volvō (“to roll; to tumble”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *welH- (“to turn; to wind (turn coils)”)).

Word family

Verbinvolve
Nouninvolvement
Adjectiveinvolved