used

American  

[yoozd, yoost] / yuzd, yust /

adjective

1. previously used or owned; secondhand.

   a used car.

2. showing wear or being worn out.

   a thrift store that accepts used clothing.

3. employed for a purpose; utilized.

   a frequently used dictionary.

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idioms

1. used to, accustomed or habituated to.

   I'm not used to cold weather. They weren't used to getting up so early.

used British  

/ juːzd /

adjective

1. bought or sold second-hand

   used cars

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used More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing used

• it takes getting used to
• use

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Usage

What is another way to say used? Something that is used has been employed for a purpose or previously owned. Used is the past participle of the general verb use. Do you know the difference between use and utilize? Find out on Thesaurus.com.

Other Word Forms

• half-used adjective
• well-used adjective

Etymology

Origin of used

First recorded in 1325–75; use + -ed ²

Example Sentences

Koike is the public face of Japan’s multibillion-dollar effort to muscle back into an industry it used to dominate.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 4, 2026

To explore how fear memories develop, the team used a mouse model and closely tracked brain activity.

From Science Daily • Apr. 4, 2026

The hardest and most "important" item to source was the yellow flotation barrels, which are like those used by the characters in the blockbuster to track the shark.

From BBC • Apr. 4, 2026

Another tell may come from the VanEck Vectors Coal ETF, which was launched in January 2008 and used the Dow Jones Coal Index as a proxy.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 4, 2026

My mom and Uncle Max used to hustle rides for the Late Night Cult Movies when they were my age.

From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith