modify

English

Etymology

From Middle English modifien, from Middle French modifier, from Latin modificare (“to limit, control, regulate, deponent”), from modificari (“to measure off, set bound to, moderate”), from modus (“measure”) + facere (“to make”); see mode.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈmɒdɪfaɪ/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈmɑdɪfaɪ/
• Hyphenation: mod‧i‧fy

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Verb

modify (third-person singular simple present modifies, present participle modifying, simple past and past participle modified)

1. (transitive) To change part of.
2. (intransitive) To be or become modified.
3. (transitive) To set bounds to; to moderate.
4. (grammar, transitive) To qualify the meaning of.
   • 1977, Linda R. Waugh, A Semantic Analysis of Word Order: Position of the Adjective in French

     There is inherently no ordering to the modification and no hierarchy of modification: that is, both adjectives modify the substantive and both apply equally to the substantive...

   • 2016, Allen Ascher, The New Harbrace Guide: Genres for Composing

     Adjectives modify nouns.

Conjugation

conjugation of modify

infinitive				modify
present participle				modifying
past participle				modified
	simple			progressive			perfect			perfect progressive
present	I modify	we modify		I am modifying	we are modifying		I have modified	we have modified		I have been modifying	we have been modifying
	you modify	you modify		you are modifying	you are modifying		you have modified	you have modified		you have been modifying	you have been modifying
	he modifies	they modify		he is modifying	they are modifying		he has modified	they have modified		he has been modifying	they have been modifying
past	I modified	we modified		I was modifying	we were modifying		I had modified	we had modified		I had been modifying	we had been modifying
	you modified	you modified		you were modifying	you were modifying		you had modified	you had modified		you had been modifying	you had been modifying
	he modified	they modified		he was modifying	they were modifying		he had modified	they had modified		he had been modifying	they had been modifying
future	I will modify	we will modify		I will be modifying	we will be modifying		I will have modified	we will have modified		I will have been modifying	we will have been modifying
	you will modify	you will modify		you will be modifying	you will be modifying		you will have modified	you will have modified		you will have been modifying	you will have been modifying
	he will modify	they will modify		he will be modifying	they will be modifying		he will have modified	they will have modified		he will have been modifying	they will have been modifying
conditional	I would modify	we would modify		I would be modifying	we would be modifying		I would have modified	we would have modified		I would have been modifying	we would have been modifying
	you would modify	you would modify		you would be modifying	you would be modifying		you would have modified	you would have modified		you would have been modifying	you would have been modifying
	he would modify	they would modify		he would be modifying	they would be modifying		he would have modified	they would have modified		he would have been modifying	they would have been modifying
imperative	modify

Synonyms

• adapt, alter, amend, revamp, rework

Related terms

• modification

Derived terms

• modifier

Translations

to change part of

• Bulgarian: изменям (bg) (izmenjam), променям (bg) (promenjam)
• Catalan: modificar (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 修改 (zh) (xiūgǎi)

• Crimean Tatar: tüzetmek
• Danish: modificere (da)
• Dutch: modificeren (nl), veranderen (nl)
• Esperanto: modifi, aliigi
• Estonian: muutma
• Finnish: muokata (fi), muunnella (fi), määrittää (fi) (grammar)
• French: modifier (fr)
• Galician: modificar (gl)
• German: ändern (de), abändern (de), modifizieren (de)
• Greek: μετατρέπω (el) (metatrépo), προσδιορίζω (el) (prosdiorízo)

• Hungarian: módosít (hu)
• Interlingua: modificar
• Italian: modificare (it)
• Korean: 수정하다 (ko) (sujeonghada)
• Ladin: muder
• Latin: adaptō
• Maori: whakarerekē, whakakē
• Polish: modyfikować (pl)
• Portuguese: modificar (pt)
• Romanian: modifica (ro)
• Russian: изменя́ть (ru) (izmenjátʹ), модифици́ровать (ru) (modificírovatʹ)
• Spanish: modificar (es)

to be or become modified

• Bulgarian: изменям се (izmenjam se), променям се (promenjam se)
• Finnish: muokkautua
• Greek: μετατρέπομαι (el) (metatrépomai)

• Hungarian: módosul (hu)
• Romanian: a (se) modifica (ro)
• Russian: изменя́ться (ru) (izmenjátʹsja), модифици́роваться (ru) (modificírovatʹsja)

References

• modify in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
• modify in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.

Anagrams

• domify