Meaning & use
organising
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“organising” is a form of “organise”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
verbtransitive
The -ing form of organise: arranging things in order or planning an event.
Grammar: Used in continuous tenses: she is organising a party.
Patterns
- be organising something
- organising something for someone
I'm organising a surprise party for my sister.
He is organising his notes before the exam.
They were organising the trip when the rain started.
adjectivebefore a noun
Used before a noun to describe the person or group that plans or runs an event or campaign.
Grammar: Always comes before the noun: the organising committee.
Patterns
- organising committee
- organising principle
The organising committee met to choose a venue.
Fairness was the organising principle of the new scheme.
Please contact the organising team with any questions.
noununcountable
The activity of planning and arranging something, often used for the work behind an event or campaign.
Grammar: Not used with an or a plural: the organising took weeks.
Patterns
- the organising of something
The organising of the festival took most of the spring.
Community organising helped residents get a new bus stop.
She is good at organising and never forgets a detail.
Common combinations
- organising committee
- The organising committee announced the schedule.
- organising a wedding
- Organising a wedding takes patience.
- community organising
- She started in community organising after university.
- organising principle
- Safety is the organising principle of the whole design.
- spend time organising
- I spend an hour a day organising my inbox.
Synonyms and how they differ
- arranging
- Arranging is lighter and often refers to one small detail, while organising covers the whole effort.
- planning
- Planning is about deciding what to do, but organising includes actually making things happen.
- coordinating
- Coordinating focuses on getting several people or tasks to work together.
- sorting
- Sorting means putting items in groups, which is narrower than organising an event.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: organising or organizing?
organising vs organizing
This is the American spelling of the same word; both are correct in their regions.
Practice
Complete the sentence: 'The ___ committee chose the date for the festival.'
Choose one answer.
Organising works as an adjective before a noun in organising committee. Organised describes something already arranged, so it does not name the group that does the planning.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “organising”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.