involve

/ɪnˈvɑlv/

/ɪnˈvɒlv/

Other forms: involved; involving; involves

To involve means to connect. When you get involved in the Spanish Club, you attend meetings and events. If doing math well is involved in understanding advanced chemistry, that means it's a necessary part of it.

When someone is very involved, it means they are engaged or connected to a lot of activities. When someone is self-involved, all they connect with is him or herself. If getting ice cream involves walking a mile to the ice cream shop, the exercise offsets the indulgence. When no exercise is involved, it's less healthy.

Definitions of involve

1. verb

   contain as a part
   “Dinner at Joe's always involves at least six courses”

   type of:

   include

   have as a part; be made up out of
2. verb

   have as a necessary feature
   “This decision involves many changes”

   synonyms: imply

   types:

   carry

   be necessarily associated with or result in or involve

   type of:

   feature, have

   have as a feature
3. verb

   require as useful, just, or proper
   synonyms: ask, call for, demand, necessitate, need, postulate, require, take

   claim, exact, take

   take as an undesirable consequence of some event or state of affairs

   types:

   claim, exact, take

   take as an undesirable consequence of some event or state of affairs

   govern

   require to be in a certain grammatical case, voice, or mood

   draw

   require a specified depth for floating

   cost

   require to lose, suffer, or sacrifice

   cry for, cry out for

   need badly or desperately

   compel

   necessitate or exact
4. verb

   engage as a participant
   “Don't involve me in your family affairs!”

   types:

   drag, drag in, embroil, sweep, sweep up, tangle

   force into some kind of situation, condition, or course of action

   entangle, mire

   entrap

   type of:

   admit, include, let in

   allow participation in or the right to be part of; permit to exercise the rights, functions, and responsibilities of
5. verb

   connect closely and often incriminatingly
   synonyms: affect, regard

   types:

   implicate

   bring into intimate and incriminating connection

   type of:

   bear on, come to, concern, have-to doe with, pertain, refer, relate, touch, touch on

   be relevant to
6. verb

   occupy or engage the interest of
   “His story completely involved me during the entire afternoon”

   type of:

   absorb, engage, engross, occupy

   consume all of one's attention or time
7. verb

   make complex or intricate or complicated
   “The situation was rather involved”

   type of:

   complicate, elaborate, rarify, refine

   make more complex, intricate, or richer