com ‧ mit S2 W2 /kəˈmɪt/ BrE AmE verb ( past tense and past participle committed , present participle committing )
[ Word Family: adjective : noncommital, ↑ committed ≠ ↑ uncommitted ; verb : ↑ commit ; noun : ↑ commitment ]
[ Date: 1300-1400 ; Language: Latin ; Origin: committere , from com- ( ⇨ COM- ) + mittere 'to send' ]
1 . CRIME [transitive] to do something wrong or illegal:
Women commit fewer crimes than men.
commit murder/rape/arson etc
Brady committed a series of brutal murders.
2 . commit suicide to kill yourself deliberately
3 . commit adultery if a married person commits adultery, they have sex with someone who is not their husband or wife
4 . SAY YOU WILL DO SOMETHING [intransitive and transitive] to say that someone will definitely do something or must do something
commit somebody to doing something
He has clearly committed his government to continuing down the path of economic reform.
commit somebody to something
Meeting them doesn’t commit us to anything.
commit yourself
I’d committed myself and there was no turning back.
commit yourself to (doing) something
The banks have committed themselves to boosting profits by slashing costs.
5 . RELATIONSHIP [intransitive and transitive] to give someone your love or support in a serious and permanent way:
Anna wants to get married, but Bob’s not sure he wants to commit.
commit to
He has not yet committed to any of the candidates.
6 . MONEY/TIME [transitive] to decide to use money, time, people etc for a particular purpose
commit something to something
A lot of money has been committed to this project.
7 . FOR TRIAL [transitive] British English to send someone to be tried in a court of law:
The two men were committed for trial at Bristol Crown Court.
8 . PRISON/HOSPITAL [transitive] to order someone to be put in a hospital or prison
commit somebody to something
The judge committed him to prison for six months.
9 . commit something to memory formal to learn something so that you remember it SYN memorize
10 . commit something to paper formal to write something down
⇨ ↑ committed
• • •
COLLOCATIONS
■ nouns
▪ commit a crime/offence
People who commit crimes end up in jail.
▪ commit murder/rape/fraud etc
The couple were accused of committing murder.
▪ commit a robbery
She later admitted committing the robbery.
▪ commit an act of violence/terrorism/aggression etc
Anyone committing an act of terrorism will be severely punished.
▪ commit treason (=the crime of being disloyal to your country)
He was accused of committing treason against the King of England.
▪ commit genocide (=the crime of attempting to kill a race of people)
In some countries, genocide is being committed every day.
▪ commit an atrocity (=commit a terrible and violent act)
During the civil war both sides committed numerous atrocities.
▪ commit a sin (=do something that is wrong according to your religion)
He confessed to having committed the sin of adultery.
• • •
THESAURUS
▪ do to do something – used in the following phrases: do your work/homework etc :
It usually takes me a couple of hours to do my homework.
| do the shopping/cooking/washing etc :
She’s gone to the supermarket to do the shopping.
| do a test/experiment/some research :
The doctor did some tests.
|
Fraser spent some time in Egypt doing some archaeological research.
|
Scientists are doing research on two types of vaccine.
| do a course :
Have you decided which course you want to do at university?
▪ make to do something – used in the following phrases: make a speech :
The Prince made a short speech.
| make a comment/suggestion/joke :
Can I make a suggestion?
| make a decision :
The committee will meet to make their final decision.
| make a mistake :
I think someone has made a mistake.
▪ give to do something – used in the following phrases: give a talk/speech/lecture :
They’ve asked him to give a talk.
| give a performance :
The band gave a brilliant performance.
▪ take to do something – used in the following phrases: take a test/exam :
Kate’s taking her driving test tomorrow.
| take a bath/shower :
I think I’ll go and take a shower.
| take a walk :
Normally, he took a walk in the evenings.
▪ commit to do something that is a crime, especially a serious crime: commit a crime :
The crime was committed in the early hours of the morning.
| commit a robbery/murder etc :
Dixon later admitted committing the robbery.
▪ carry out something to do something – used in the following phrases: carry out your work :
The violence is making it difficult for firefighters to carry out their work.
| carry out a task/duty :
He still managed to carry out his duties.
| carry out a survey/test/some research :
The hospital carries out research into skin diseases.
| carry out an operation :
The operation was carried out at a hospital in Paris.
| carry out a threat/promise :
They didn’t carry out their threat to kill the hostages.
| carry out sb’s orders/instructions/wishes :
I’m sure I can rely on you to carry out my instructions.
▪ perform to do something. Perform is more formal than carry out , and is used in the following phrases: perform a task/duty :
The job mostly involves performing administrative tasks.
| perform an operation :
A team of surgeons performed the operation.
▪ conduct to do something – used in the following phrases: conduct a survey/study/experiment :
They conducted a survey of approximately 2,000 people living in the area.
| conduct an inquiry/investigation :
The police are conducting an investigation into the cause of the fire.
| conduct an interview :
Knowing how to conduct a successful interview is a skill.
| conduct a campaign :
People were unimpressed by the way in which the election campaign was conducted.
▪ go about something to do your work or the things that you usually do, especially when something serious has happened: go about your work/business :
The next day she went about her business as if nothing had happened.
▪ get on with something spoken especially British English to start doing something that you should have started already or to continue doing something that you stopped doing for a short time:
I need to get on with my homework.
▪ be up to something spoken to be doing something that you think is probably bad, although you do not know exactly what it is:
I’m sure they’re up to something.
|
What’s Jake up to? He’s been upstairs in his room all day.