Meaning & use
appends
Last updated
“appends” is a form of “append”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
verbtransitive
Add something to the end of a piece of writing or a list.
Grammar: Takes an object: append a note. Often used with 'to': append something to something.
Patterns
- append something to something
- append a note/signature
She appends a short comment to every report she writes.
Please append your signature to the end of the contract.
The editor appends a list of sources to each chapter.
verbtransitivecomputing
Add data to the end of a file or computer program without changing what is already there.
Grammar: Takes an object: append data. Common in computing contexts.
Patterns
- append data to a file
- append a string
The script appends each new record to the log file.
You can append text to the document without deleting the old content.
This function appends the user's name to the message.
Word forms
| base form | append |
|---|---|
| third person singular | appends |
| past tense | appended |
| past participle | appended |
| -ing form | appending |
Common combinations
- append something to something
- He appended a footnote to the page.
- append a signature
- The lawyer appended her signature to the document.
- append a note
- She appended a note explaining the delay.
- append data
- The program appends data to the database every hour.
Synonyms and how they differ
- add
- More general and common; 'add' can be used in almost any situation, while 'append' specifically means adding to the end.
- attach
- Often used for physical objects or files; 'attach' does not always mean at the end, but 'append' does.
- annex
- Formal and usually means adding territory or a document; 'append' is more common for text or data.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: appends or appendicitis?
appends vs appendicitis
This is a medical condition (inflammation of the appendix), not a form of the verb 'append'.
Practice
She ___ a summary of the findings to the end of the report.
Choose one answer.
The subject 'She' is third-person singular and the sentence is in the present tense, so the verb must be 'appends'. 'Append' is the base form and would be used with I/you/we/they; 'appending' is a participle and needs an auxiliary; 'appended' is past tense and would not match the present-time context.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “appends”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.