Meanings
present singular third person adjusts · participle present adjusting · participle past adjusted · past adjusted · first person past singular adjusted · archaic present second person singular adjustest · past second person singular adjusted · archaic past second person singular adjustedst · present singular third person adjusts · archaic present singular third person adjusteth · past singular third person adjusted · past plural adjusted · past subjunctive adjusted · participle present adjusting · participle past adjusted
- transitiveTo modify.
Morimoto's recipes are adjusted to suit the American palate.
1 more example
As the world's drug habit shows, governments are failing in their quest to monitor every London window-box and Andean hillside for banned plants. But even that Sisyphean task looks easy next to the fight against synthetic drugs. No sooner has a drug been blacklisted than chemists adjust their recipe and start churning out a subtly different one.
2013 August 10, “A new prescription”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8848 - transitiveTo improve or rectify.
He adjusted his initial conclusion to reflect the new data.
1 more example
But poverty’s scourge is fiercest below $1.25 (the average of the 15 poorest countries’ own poverty lines, measured in 2005 dollars and adjusted for differences in purchasing power): people below that level live lives that are poor, nasty, brutish and short.
2013 June 1, “Towards the end of poverty”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8838, page 11 - transitiveTo settle an insurance claim.
Murder is dealt with by the law of blood-revenge, but the innocent manslayer may seek asylum at God's altar. With murder are ranked man-stealing, offences against parents, and witchcraft. Other injuries are occasions of self-help or of private suits to be adjusted at the sanctuary.
1892, W. Robertson Smith, The Old Testament in the Jewish Church, page 340 - intransitiveTo change to fit circumstances.
Most immigrants adjust quickly to a new community.
1 more example
She waited for her eyes to adjust to the darkness.
Synonyms: accommodate
Synonyms & antonyms
verbTo change to fit circumstances.
More synonyms by meaning
verbalter or regulate so as to achieve accuracy or conform to a standard
verbplace in a line or arrange so as to be parallel or straight
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Latiniuxta
- Vulgar Latin*adiuxtāre
- Old Frenchajouster
- Latinad“to, up to, towards”
- Middle Frenchadjuster
- Middle Englishajusten
- Englishadjust
From Middle English ajusten, borrowed from Middle French adjuster, or Old French, from Latin ad (“to, up to, towards”) + iustus (“correct, proper, exact”); Equivalent to ad- + just. Probably influenced in sense by Old French ajouster (cf. modern ajouter), from Vulgar Latin *adiuxtāre, from Latin iuxta. The Middle English originally meant "to correct, remedy" in the late 14th century, and was reborrowed from Middle French in the early 17th century. According to another view on the etymology, the word was actually derived from Old French ajouster and then supposedly later influenced by folk etymology from Latin iustus; if so, it is a doublet of adjute.
More words from Middle English, Middle French, Latin
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Bulgarian нагласявам, приспособявам
- нагласявам (naglasjavam)to modify
- приспособявам (prisposobjavam)to modify
- оправям (opravjam)to improve or rectify
- нагаждам (nagaždam)to change to fit circumstances
Catalan ajustar
- ajustarto modify
Chinese Mandarin 調整 /调整, 適應 /适应
- 調整 /调整 (tiáozhěng)to modify
- 適應 /适应 (shìyǐng)to change to fit circumstances
Czech upravit
- upravitto modify
Dutch aanpassen, verstellen
- aanpassento modify
- verstellento modify
- aanpassento improve or rectify
- herziento improve or rectify
- verbeterento improve or rectify
Esperanto adapti, akomodi
- adaptito modify
- akomodito modify
- alĝustigito improve or rectify
- ĝustigito improve or rectify
- akomodiĝito change to fit circumstances
- adaptiĝito change to fit circumstances
Finnish mukauttaa, muuttaa
- mukauttaato modify
- muuttaato modify
- muokatato modify
- sopeuttaato modify
- muuttaato improve or rectify
- korvatato settle an insurance claim
- sopeutuato change to fit circumstances
French ajuster, ajuster
- ajusterto modify
- ajusterto improve or rectify
German anpassen, abstimmen
- anpassento modify
- abstimmento modify
- ausrichtento modify
- justierento modify
- geringfügig ändernto modify
- leicht abändernto modify
- etwas verstellento modify
- berichtigento improve or rectify
- nachbessernto improve or rectify
- anpassento change to fit circumstances
- einfügento change to fit circumstances
- einlebento change to fit circumstances
Greek ρυθμίζω, προσαρμόζω
- ρυθμίζω (rythmízo)to modify
- προσαρμόζω (prosarmózo)to improve or rectify
- διευθετώ (diefthetó)to settle an insurance claim
Hebrew כוונן, התאים
- כוונן (kivnén)to modify
- התאים (hit'ím)to modify
- התאים (hit'ím)to improve or rectify
- תיקן (tikén)to improve or rectify
- כוונן (kivnén)to improve or rectify
- התאים (hit'ím)to change to fit circumstances
Hungarian beállít, igazít
- beállítto modify
- igazítto modify
- hozzáigazítto modify
- illesztto modify
- hozzáillesztto modify
- kiigazítto improve or rectify
- korrigálto improve or rectify
- helyesbítto improve or rectify
- elintézto settle an insurance claim
- rendezto settle an insurance claim
- alkalmazkodikto change to fit circumstances
Irish ceartaigh
- ceartaighto improve or rectify
Italian adattare, adeguare
- adattareto modify
- adeguareto modify
- regolareto modify
- regolareto improve or rectify
Japanese 調整する
- 調整する (chōsei suru)to modify
Latin accommodō, adapto
- accommodōto modify
- adaptoto modify
Māori whakarerekē
- whakarerekēto modify
Norwegian justere, stille
- justereto modify
- stilleto modify
- justereto improve or rectify
- korrigereto improve or rectify
Polish dostosowywać, dostosować
- dostosowywaćto modify
- dostosowaćto modify
- poprawićto improve or rectify
- poprawiaćto improve or rectify
Portuguese ajustar, ajustar
- ajustarto modify
- ajustarto improve or rectify
- enquadrarto change to fit circumstances
Romanian ajusta, potrivi
- ajustato modify
- potrivito modify
- reglato modify
- ajustato improve or rectify
Russian регули́ровать, отрегули́ровать
- регули́ровать (regulírovatʹ)to modify
- отрегули́ровать (otregulírovatʹ)to modify
- настра́ивать (nastráivatʹ)to modify
- настро́ить (nastróitʹ)to modify
- подстра́ивать (podstráivatʹ)to improve or rectify
- подстро́ить (podstróitʹ)to improve or rectify
Spanish ajustar, compaginar
- ajustarto modify
- compaginarto modify
- cohonestarto modify
- ajustarto improve or rectify
- aforarto improve or rectify
- hacer ajustesto improve or rectify
- acompasarto improve or rectify
Swedish anpassa, avpassa
- anpassato modify
- avpassato modify
- justerato modify
- ställa into modify
- inställato modify
- modifierato modify
Vietnamese điều chỉnh
- điều chỉnhto modify
Welsh addasu
- addasuto modify
Cite this entry
adjust. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/adjust
“adjust.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/adjust. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “adjust,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/adjust.
Source: adjust on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.