committed; committing
1
: to carry into action deliberately : perpetrate
commit a crime
commit a sin
2
3
a
: to put into charge or trust : entrust
… commit all executive, legislative, and judicial powers to one man …—
Arthur T. Vanderbilt
Arthur T. Vanderbilt
b
: to place in a prison or mental institution
The patient was committed by the court to a mental hospital.
He was committed to the state penitentiary for 10 years
c
: to consign or record for preservation
commit it to memory
d
: to put into a place for disposal or safekeeping
The chaplain committed the sailor's body to the deep.
e
: to refer (something, such as a legislative bill) to a committee for consideration and report
Synonyms
Examples of commit in a Sentence
The massacre was committed by the rebel army.
The contract commits the company to finishing the bridge by next fall.
He keeps delaying his decision because he doesn't want to commit himself.
They have not yet committed to a particular course of action.
Recent Examples on the Web
But after years of delay the prosecutors ended up charging only low-level buyers, mostly for committing paperwork violations.
—Ieva Jusionyte, Rolling Stone, 16 Apr. 2024
Washington says that Iran provides extensive support to Hamas and to another militant group committed to armed resistance against Israel, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, in the form of financing, weapons and training.
—Sammy Westfall, Washington Post, 16 Apr. 2024
But in a new report, workforce management platform Rippling found companies that have committed to in-person work are growing faster than their hybrid and fully remote counterparts.
—Jane Thier, Fortune, 16 Apr. 2024
Veganism is an act of choice to abstain from committing cruelty to anything.
—Deborah Vankin, Los Angeles Times, 16 Apr. 2024
This year judges in New York have already ruled against Trump in civil trials: He's been ordered to pay over $355 million for committing business fraud and to pay former columnist E. Jean Carroll $83 million for defamation.
—Ximena Bustillo, NPR, 15 Apr. 2024
The mother and daughter were accused by Giuliani of committing election fraud while the two were counting ballots in Georgia's Fulton County on Election Day in 2020.
—Mark Osborne, ABC News, 15 Apr. 2024
The 55-year-old father is accused of murder and conspiring to commit murder in the deaths of two of his wife’s children, 7-year-old JJ Vallow and 16-year-old Tylee Ryan, and his then-wife Tammy Daybell.
—Alex Brizee, Idaho Statesman, 15 Apr. 2024
The five leading broadcast and cable news networks joined six more major wire, print and radio organizations on Sunday with a joint statement urging the 2024 presidential candidates to commit to participating in general election debates.
—Zoe G Phillips, The Hollywood Reporter, 14 Apr. 2024
Ieva Jusionyte, Rolling Stone, 16 Apr. 2024
Washington says that Iran provides extensive support to Hamas and to another militant group committed to armed resistance against Israel, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, in the form of financing, weapons and training.
—Sammy Westfall, Washington Post, 16 Apr. 2024
But in a new report, workforce management platform Rippling found companies that have committed to in-person work are growing faster than their hybrid and fully remote counterparts.
—Jane Thier, Fortune, 16 Apr. 2024
Veganism is an act of choice to abstain from committing cruelty to anything.
—Deborah Vankin, Los Angeles Times, 16 Apr. 2024
This year judges in New York have already ruled against Trump in civil trials: He's been ordered to pay over $355 million for committing business fraud and to pay former columnist E. Jean Carroll $83 million for defamation.
—Ximena Bustillo, NPR, 15 Apr. 2024
The mother and daughter were accused by Giuliani of committing election fraud while the two were counting ballots in Georgia's Fulton County on Election Day in 2020.
—Mark Osborne, ABC News, 15 Apr. 2024
The 55-year-old father is accused of murder and conspiring to commit murder in the deaths of two of his wife’s children, 7-year-old JJ Vallow and 16-year-old Tylee Ryan, and his then-wife Tammy Daybell.
—Alex Brizee, Idaho Statesman, 15 Apr. 2024
The five leading broadcast and cable news networks joined six more major wire, print and radio organizations on Sunday with a joint statement urging the 2024 presidential candidates to commit to participating in general election debates.
—Zoe G Phillips, The Hollywood Reporter, 14 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'commit.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near commit
Cite this Entry
“Commit.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/commit. Accessed 20 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
commit
verb
com·mit
kə-ˈmit 
committed; committing
1
a
: to make secure or put in safekeeping : entrust
commit the poem to memory
b
: to place in a prison or mental institution
2
: bring about, perform
commit a crime
3
: to pledge or assign to some particular course or use
committed myself to a meeting on Thursday
Medical Definition
commit
transitive verb
com·mit
kə-ˈmit
committed; committing
: to place in a prison or mental institution
a patient committed by the court to a state hospital
Legal Definition
commit
verb
com·mit
committed; committing
1
b
: to place in a prison or mental hospital especially by judicial order
was found to be gravely disabled and was involuntarily committed to the Central Louisiana State Hospital—In the Matter of K.G., 531 So. 2d 575 (1988)
compare institutionalize, interdict
In the Matter of K.G., 531 So. 2d 575 (1988)
c
: to send (as a legislative bill) to a committee for consideration and report
commit the crime bill to the joint committee
2
: to carry into action deliberately : perpetrate
to define and punish piracies and felonies committed on the high seas—U.S. Constitution art. I
U.S. Constitution art. I
: to obligate or bind oneself
would not commit to the irrevocable order
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