consolidate

[ kuhn-sol-i-deyt ]

verb (used with object)

, con·sol·i·dat·ed, con·sol·i·dat·ing.

1. to bring together (separate parts) into a single or unified whole; unite; combine:

   They consolidated their three companies.

2. to discard the unused or unwanted items of and organize the remaining:

   She consolidated her home library.

3. to make solid or firm; solidify; strengthen:

   to consolidate gains.

4. Military. to strengthen by rearranging the position of ground combat troops after a successful attack.

verb (used without object)

, con·sol·i·dat·ed, con·sol·i·dat·ing.

1. to unite or combine.
2. to become solid or firm.

adjective

1. consolidated ( def 2 ).

consolidate

/ kənˈsɒlɪˌdeɪt /

verb

1. to form or cause to form into a solid mass or whole; unite or be united
2. to make or become stronger or more stable
3. military to strengthen or improve one's control over (a situation, force, newly captured area, etc)

Other Words From

• con·soli·dator noun
• precon·soli·date verb preconsolidated preconsolidating
• recon·soli·date verb reconsolidated reconsolidating
• uncon·soli·dating adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of consolidate¹

First recorded in 1505–15; from Latin consolidātus “made solid,” past participle of consolidāre “to make solid,” equivalent to con- + solid + -ate ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of consolidate¹

C16: from Latin consolidāre to make firm, from solidus strong, solid

Example Sentences

Days after taking office, he called a snap election for the parliament’s lower house in an attempt to consolidate his mandate.

From BBC

They consciously deployed the nostalgic language of feudalism as a political smokescreen to obscure their moves to consolidate the cultural, political and economic power that would sustain their elevated social positions and the collective ascendancy of their race.

From Salon

The trend across the 21st century has been for Democrats to consolidate advantages with college-educated voters while losing support among voters without a college degree.

From Slate

The gambit helped to consolidate Republican support behind Garvey and vault him past fierce competitor Rep. Katie Porter, an Orange County Democrat, who finished a distant third.

From Los Angeles Times

All action on an increasingly deadly climate crisis would end or be reversed, the right’s repressive anti-trans panic would intensify in its reach and its cruelty, and the reactionaries who wrote Project 2025 would consolidate their power across the administrative state and the federal courts.

From Slate

Related Words

• build up
• cement
• centralize
• concentrate
• develop
• fortify
• reinforce
• secure
• solidify
• stabilize
• strengthen
• unify