signed on

Meanings

1. 1verbintransitive

   Joined the armed forces by signing an official document.

   Grammar: No object; often used with 'for' or 'as': 'He signed on for three years.'

   Patterns

   • sign on for something
   • sign on as something

   He signed on for a five-year tour of duty.

   Many young men signed on as soldiers during the war.

2. 2verbintransitiveBritish

   Registered as unemployed to receive government payments.

   Grammar: Common in British English; often followed by 'at' a job center.

   Patterns

   • sign on at a place
   • sign on for benefits

   After losing his job, he signed on at the local job center.

   She signed on for unemployment benefits last month.

3. 3verbintransitivecomputing

   Logged into a computer system or website by entering a username and password.

   Grammar: Often followed by 'to' a service: 'I signed on to the site.'

   Patterns

   • sign on to something

   I signed on to the company network from home.

   He signed on to his email account to check for messages.

Word forms

Common combinations

sign on for

She signed on for another year in the army.

sign on as

He signed on as a cook on a ship.

sign on at the job center

In Britain, you may sign on at the job center when you lose your job.

sign on to a website

You need to sign on to the website to see your account.

Synonyms and how they differ

enlist

Enlist is more formal and usually means joining the army voluntarily; 'sign on' is more general and can also mean claiming benefits or logging in.

log in

Log in is the usual term for entering a computer system; 'sign on' is similar but less common in American English.

Word family

sign verb

To write your name on a document.

signing noun

The act of joining a team or organization by signing a contract.

Commonly confused: signed on or sign in?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “signed on”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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