What does “establish” mean?
- 1
verbto start a company, organization or system that will last a long time
The school was established in 1890.
- 2
verbto find out or prove that something is true
Police are trying to establish what caused the fire.
Establish at a glance
- Part of speech
- verb
- CEFR level
- B2 (upper intermediate)
- Pronunciation
- /ɪˈstæblɪʃ/ · ih-STAB-lish
How to use “establish” correctly
“Establish” is more formal than “set up”. It’s often used in the passive: “was established in ...”.
Common phrases with “establish”
- establish a business
- establish contact
- well established
- establish the facts
Synonyms, opposites and related words
Word family
- establishment
- established
“establish” is on these word lists
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