Meaning & use
conform
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Meanings
verbintransitive
To follow the rules, standards, or customs of a group or system.
Grammar: No object; usually followed by to or with: conform to the rules.
Patterns
- conform to something
- conform with something
All new buildings must conform to the safety code.
Students in the school are expected to conform to the dress code.
The product does not conform with European standards.
verbintransitivedisapproving
To behave like everyone else because of social pressure, rather than following your own wishes.
Grammar: Often used alone: refuse to conform.
Patterns
- conform to expectations
- refuse to conform
Teenagers often feel pressure to conform.
She never tried to conform to what other people wanted.
He chose not to conform and wore what he liked.
verbtransitiveformal
To change something so that it matches a rule or pattern.
Grammar: Takes an object and often to: conform the data to the format.
Patterns
- conform something to something
The editor conformed all the citations to a single style.
We conformed the plan to the new budget.
They conformed the software to the client's requirements.
Word forms
| third person singular | conforms |
|---|---|
| past tense | conformed |
| past participle | conformed |
| -ing form | conforming |
Common combinations
- conform to standards
- The toys must conform to safety standards.
- refuse to conform
- The artist refused to conform to fashion.
- conform to expectations
- Few people can avoid conforming to expectations.
- pressure to conform
- Peer pressure to conform can be strong.
- conform with the law
- The company says its practices conform with the law.
Synonyms and how they differ
- comply
- Comply is used mostly for rules and orders, while conform can also describe fitting in socially.
- adhere
- Adhere to is a formal way to say stick closely to a rule, plan or belief.
- fit in
- Fit in is the casual way of saying match the group, with no suggestion of following rules.
- obey
- Obey means do what a person or order tells you, while conform is about matching a standard.
Opposites
Word family
- conformity noun
- behavior that matches rules or the group
- conformist noun
- a person who follows accepted norms
- nonconformist noun
- a person who does not follow accepted norms
- conformance noun
- the state of meeting a standard, used in technical writing
Commonly confused: conform or confirm?
conform vs confirm
Confirm means to say or show that something is true; conform means to match a rule or group. They look similar but differ by one letter.
Practice
The new bridge must ___ to strict engineering standards before it can open.
Choose one answer.
Conform to standards means to meet them. Confirm is followed by a fact, not to, and the others do not fit.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “conform”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.