entail
Americanverb (used with object)
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entails,
present (3rd person singular)
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entailed,
past participle, past
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entailing
present participle
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to cause or involve by necessity or as a consequence.
a loss entailing no regret.
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to impose as a burden.
Success entails hard work.
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Law. to limit the passage of (real estate) to a specified line of heirs, so that it cannot be transferred or bequeathed to anyone else.
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Law. to cause (anything) to descend to a fixed series of possessors.
noun
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the act of entailing.
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Law. the state of being entailed.
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any predetermined order of succession, as to an office.
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Law. something that is entailed, as an estate.
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Law. the rule of descent settled for an estate.
verb
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to bring about or impose by necessity; have as a necessary consequence
this task entails careful thought
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property law to restrict (the descent of an estate) to a designated line of heirs
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logic to have as a necessary consequence
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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entailsimple
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entailssimple
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have entailedperfect
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has entailedperfect
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am entailingprogressive
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are entailingprogressive
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is entailingprogressive
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have been entailingperfect progressive
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has been entailingperfect progressive
Past
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entailedsimple
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had entailedperfect
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was entailingprogressive
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were entailingprogressive
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had been entailingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of entail
First recorded in 1350–1400; from Middle English entailen (verb), entail (noun), equivalent to en- 1 + tail 2 ( def. )
Explanation
To entail is to involve. A job at a movie theater might entail sweeping popcorn off the floor, probably because watching a movie entails eating popcorn in the dark. It’s a small price to pay! The word entail, which comes from Latin, is connected to the idea of preconditions. If you want something, you better figure out what it entails. If it’s only 8 o’clock and you want to see a movie at 9, that will entail waiting for an hour. If you want to stay out of trouble, that will entail calling your parents and letting them know you're going to be late. That’s what being responsible entails!
Vocabulary lists containing entail
List 7
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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:
Ignore how free speech does not entail freedom from consequences.
From Slate ● Aug. 20, 2026
She didn’t elaborate on what the upgrades would entail.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026
They are also quieter than portable units, but they do entail larger upfront costs and need to be installed by a professional tradesperson.
From BBC ● Jul. 9, 2026
Reforming the historic structure of multimember agencies will entail trade-offs but is worth considering as this new landscape takes shape.
From Slate ● Jul. 6, 2026
Stephen, how do we know what the ultimate good of Humanity will entail?
From "I, Robot" by Isaac Asimov
The Institute for Fiscal Studies think tank says there is "relatively little detail" about what Reform's plan entails.
From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026
That’s what his seeming break with longevity actually entails: an overhaul of his life’s mission away from “lifemaxxing” toward more specific goals like curing the incurable.
From Slate ● Jul. 31, 2026
Another ruse is called ghost booking, which entails an employee booking conference rooms or workstations online to suggest they are in the office.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 30, 2026
AI is important in drug development, which entails large, expensive risks, AstraZeneca CEO Pascal Soriot says on a call with reporters.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
Back at work, Mr. Kreuk has actual work for me, the kind my official job entails.
From "Girl in the Blue Coat" by Monica Hesse
On Friday, the court's judges said the 2024 drone operation "entailed the use of South Korea's military capabilities for private purposes".
From Barron's ● Jun. 12, 2026
In the model, the “availability” phase entailed contact and small-scale movements across the frontier, with trading relationships and marriage alliances, for example, forming gradually.
From Science Daily ● May 30, 2026
For Morris, stepping into the shoes of a Black journalist working during the Great Depression and in a still segregated reality entailed meaningful research.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 20, 2026
This double estate is entailed to each of us at birth.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 9, 2026
It was a long ride, but easier than the bus-train combo Sherry’s other prospect would have entailed.
From "Geeks: How Two Lost Boys Rode the Internet Out of Idaho" by Jon Katz
In recent years, a couple of local districts have rolled out pilot programs entailing the release of sterile male mosquitoes to drive the population down, a relatively new approach to tackling these mosquitoes.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 20, 2025
So, the fuel needs a larger percentage of this isotope, entailing higher uranium-235 enrichment than the 4 percent enriched LEU typically used in nuclear power plants.
From Scientific American ● Oct. 20, 2023
Sardinia has restaurants all over the island referred to as "agriturismo," which is where local farms offer up a dining experience typically entailing a set menu consisting of only ingredients from the property.
From Salon ● Oct. 1, 2023
Like other shareholders, Italy will see the value of its stake wiped out, entailing a 5.4 billion euro loss.
From Reuters ● Oct. 11, 2022
There are videos about the importance and difference of treble and bass clefs; there is a list of music terms and what they mean, and the site even contains videos entailing the transposition of music.
From "Music and the Child" by Natalie Sarrazin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
