congregate
Americanverb (used without object)
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congregates,
present (3rd person singular)
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congregated,
past participle, past
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congregating
present participle
verb (used with object)
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congregates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
congregated,
past participle, past
-
congregating
present participle
adjective
-
congregated; assembled.
-
formed by collecting; collective.
verb
adjective
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collected together; assembled
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relating to collecting; collective
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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congregativenessnoun
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congregatornoun
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decongregateverb
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congregativeadjective
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noncongregativeadjective
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uncongregatedadjective
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uncongregativeadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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congregatesimple
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congregatessimple
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have congregatedperfect
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has congregatedperfect
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am congregatingprogressive
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are congregatingprogressive
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is congregatingprogressive
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have been congregatingperfect progressive
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has been congregatingperfect progressive
Past
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congregatedsimple
-
had congregatedperfect
-
was congregatingprogressive
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were congregatingprogressive
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had been congregatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of congregate
1350–1400; Middle English (adj.) < Latin congregātus (past participle of congregāre to flock together), equivalent to con- con- + greg- (stem of grex ) flock + -ātus -ate 1
Explanation
Congregate is a verb that means to come together, to assemble, or to gather. At school dances, you may congregate with your friends, because you get nervous in front of kids you don't know very well. Congregate comes from Latin root words com, meaning "together" and gregare, meaning "to gather in a flock." Congregation, or a gathering or assembly, comes from the same roots, as does gregarious, an adjective describing someone who likes to gather with others to socialize. If you remember the key word is flock — what ministers often call their congregations — you should have no trouble remembering congregate means to flock together.
Vocabulary lists containing congregate
Power Prefix: con-
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Large numbers congregate along the Palm Beach County coast each winter, while smaller groups can be found there throughout the year.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 30, 2026
Crawlspace LA, which closed in February, similarly started as a space for dancers to congregate and experiment.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 30, 2026
One lesson of the pandemic was that hotels and motels mobilized to house the unsheltered were successful in bringing people indoors who were otherwise reluctant to stay in congregate shelters or withstand involuntary hospitalizations.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 11, 2026
While Celtic fans traditionally congregate in the Trongate and Merchant City, Rangers fans assembled in huge numbers in George Square when the Ibrox side last won the title in 2021.
From BBC ● May 15, 2026
By nightfall, when the boys Rab had selected began silently to congregate in the office of the Observer, behind locked doors, the rain stopped.
From "Johnny Tremain" by Esther Hoskins Forbes
Teams that sign free agents or make blockbuster trades during the few days everyone of importance in the MLB universe congregates under one luxury hotel roof get out-sized applause for their moves.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 13, 2024
Instead, this 21st Century fanbase congregates more politely on TikTok, Instagram and X, where the hashtag that brings fans, Liam memes, and Bonehead jokes together, is #oasistwt.
From BBC ● Aug. 30, 2024
In the last year, she’s found a welcoming home in the Edinburgh folk music scene that congregates around Captains Bar.
From New York Times ● Aug. 30, 2022
They form when water vapor congregates around specks of meteor dust floating in the mesosphere and freezes, forming ice crystals.
From Washington Post ● Jul. 2, 2022
The day's last flock of gray birds congregates above the seedheads of spent wildflowers and launches across the yellow green into a slate-blue sky.
From "What the Night Sings" by Vesper Stamper
Dozens of young people congregated at Nepal's burnt-out parliament building on Tuesday to mark the anniversary of deadly anti-corruption protests that toppled the former government.
From Barron's ● Sep. 8, 2026
Police were initially called after a group of people congregated on Edgware Road on Thursday evening and blocked traffic.
From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2026
On a sunny weekend in early May, hundreds congregated at Raw Farm for its annual Camping With the Cows event.
From Salon ● Jun. 22, 2026
A bar was set up in the back for spectators to grab drinks—performers congregated there after their sets to chat with bookers and agents.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 30, 2026
We ran into the building and congregated around the double doors in the back.
From "Tangerine" by Edward Bloor
So to discourage them from congregating, simply provide less food.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 24, 2026
The day-long convention was over a month in the making, and it was difficult to get day laborers comfortable with congregating in person, Alvarado said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 26, 2026
So when he heard on social media that Germans were congregating in Times Square, Altmeks readily pulled on a jersey of his hero Rudi Voller -- plus a wig mimicking the famed striker's blond curls.
From Barron's ● Jun. 27, 2026
“There’s something about having that moment when you’re congregating with people that you don’t always get to see.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 17, 2025
The Square’s the obvious congregating point and the few bits behind the buildings look more like wasteland.
From "Never Let Me Go" by Kazuo Ishiguro
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
