comprise

comprise

to include all; contain: Fifty states comprise the Union.

Not to be confused with:

compose – create or put together; constitute; to calm one’s mind or body: After the accident, it took me a long time to compose myself.

Abused, Confused, & Misused Words by Mary Embree Copyright © 2007, 2013 by Mary Embree

com·prise

 (kəm-prīz′)

tr.v. com·prised, com·pris·ing, com·pris·es

1. To be composed of or contain: The staff comprises eight physicians, two dozen nurses, and various administrative people. See Synonyms at include.

2. Usage Problem To compose; make up; constitute: the countries and territories that comprised the British Empire.

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[Middle English comprisen, from Old French compris, past participle of comprendre, to include, from Latin comprehendere, comprēndere; see comprehend.]

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com·pris′a·ble adj.

Usage Note: The traditional rule states that the whole comprises the parts and the parts compose the whole. In strict usage: The Union comprises 50 states. Fifty states compose (or make up) the Union. Even though many writers maintain this distinction, comprise is often used in place of compose, especially in the passive: The Union is comprised of 50 states. Our surveys show that opposition to this usage has abated but has not disappeared. In the 1960s, 53 percent of the Usage Panel found this usage unacceptable; by 1996, the proportion objecting had declined to 35 percent; and by 2011, it had fallen a bit more, to 32 percent. See Usage Note at include.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

comprise

(kəmˈpraɪz)

vb (tr)

1. to include; contain

2. to constitute the whole of; consist of: her singing comprised the entertainment.

[C15: from French compris included, understood, from comprendre to comprehend]

comˈprisable adj

comˈprisal n

Usage: The use of of after comprise should be avoided: the library comprises (not comprises of) 500 000 books and manuscripts

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

com•prise

(kəmˈpraɪz)

v.t. -prised, -pris•ing.

1. to include or contain: The Soviet Union comprised several republics.

2. to consist of; be composed of: The advisory board comprises six members.

3. to form or constitute: Seminars and lectures comprised the day's activities.

Idioms:

be comprised of, to consist of; be composed of: The sales network is comprised of independent outlets and chain stores.

[1400–50; late Middle English < Middle French compris, past participle of comprendre < Latin comprehēndere; see comprehend]

com•pris′a•ble, adj.

com•pris′al, n.

syn: See include.

usage: comprise has had an interesting history of sense development. In addition to its original senses, dating from the 15th century, “to include” and “to consist of” (The United States of America comprises 50 states), comprise has had since the late 18th century the meaning “to form or constitute” (Fifty states comprise the United States of America). Since the late 19th century it has also been used in passive constructions with a sense synonymous with one of its original meanings, “to consist of, be composed of”: The United States of America is comprised of 50 states. These later uses are often criticized, but they occur with increasing frequency even in formal speech and edited writing.

Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.

comprise

1. 'comprise'

You say that something comprises particular things when you are mentioning all its parts.

The village's facilities comprised one public toilet and two telephones.

2. 'be composed of' and 'consist of'

You can also say that something is composed of or consists of particular things. There is no difference in meaning.

The body is composed of many kinds of cells, such as muscle, bone, nerve, and fat.

The committee consists of scientists and engineers.

Be Careful!
Don't use a passive form of consist of. Don't say, for example, 'The committee is consisted of scientists and engineers'.

3. 'constitute'

Constitute works in the opposite way to the verbs just mentioned. If a number of things or people constitute something, they are the parts or members that form it.

Volunteers constitute more than 95% of The Center's work force.

4. 'make up'

Make up can be used in either an active or passive form. In its active form, it has the same meaning as constitute.

Women made up two-fifths of the audience.

In its passive form, it is followed by of and has the same meaning as be composed of.

All substances are made up of molecules.

Nearly half the Congress is made up of lawyers.

Be Careful!
Don't use a progressive form of any of these verbs. Don't say, for example, 'The committee is consisting of scientists and engineers'.

Collins COBUILD English Usage © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 2004, 2011, 2012

comprise

Past participle: comprised
Gerund: comprising

Imperative

comprise

comprise

Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011

Thesaurus

Verb	1.	comprise - be composed of; "The land he conquered comprised several provinces"; "What does this dish consist of?" consist be - have the quality of being; (copula, used with an adjective or a predicate noun); "John is rich"; "This is not a good answer"
	2.	comprise - include or contain; have as a component; "A totally new idea is comprised in this paper"; "The record contains many old songs from the 1930's" contain, incorporate include - have as a part, be made up out of; "The list includes the names of many famous writers"
	3.	comprise - form or compose; "This money is my only income"; "The stone wall was the backdrop for the performance"; "These constitute my entire belonging"; "The children made up the chorus"; "This sum represents my entire income for a year"; "These few men comprise his entire army" constitute, make up, represent, be make - constitute the essence of; "Clothes make the man" compose - form the substance of; "Greed and ambition composed his personality" form, constitute, make - to compose or represent:"This wall forms the background of the stage setting"; "The branches made a roof"; "This makes a fine introduction" straddle, range - range or extend over; occupy a certain area; "The plants straddle the entire state" fall into, fall under - be included in or classified as; "This falls under the rubric 'various'" pose, present - introduce; "This poses an interesting question" supplement - serve as a supplement to; "Vitamins supplemented his meager diet"

Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.

comprise

verb

1. be composed of, include, contain, consist of, take in, embrace, encompass, comprehend The exhibition comprises 50 oils and watercolours.

2. make up, form, constitute, compose Women comprise 44% of hospital medical staff.

Usage: The use of of after comprise should be avoided: the library comprises (not comprises of) 6500,000 books and manuscripts. Consist, however, should be followed by of when used in this way: Her crew consisted of children from Devon and Cornwall.

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

comprise

verb

To have as a part:

comprehend, contain, embody, embrace, encompass, have, include, involve, subsume, take in.

The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Translations

يَشْمَل، يَتَضَمَّن

obsahovatskládat se z

bestå afindeholde

umfassen

comprenderconstar deincluir

comprendrecontenirrenfermer

samanstanda af

comprendere

susidėti iš

ietvertsastādītveidot

bevattenomvattenuitmakenvormen

inneholdeutgjøre

składać sięzawierać

comporconsistirconter

meydana gelmekoluşmak

包括构成

comprise

[kəmˈpraɪz] VT (= include) → comprender; (= be made up of) → constar de, consistir en

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

comprise

[kəmˈpraɪz] vt

(= consist of) → comprendre
to be comprised of → comprendre

(= make up) → constituer

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

comprise

vt → bestehen aus, umfassen

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

comprise

[kəmˈpraɪz] vt (also be comprised of) (be made up of) → comprendere; (make up) → costituire

Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

comprise

(kəmˈpraiz) verb

to contain or consist of. Her family comprises two sons and a daughter. behels, beslaan, bevat, inbegryp, insluit, omvat, bestaan uit يَشْمَل، يَتَضَمَّن състоя се от incluir obsahovat, skládat se z umfassen bestå af; indeholde περιλαμβάνω, αποτελούμαι απόcomprender hõlmama متشکل بودن از koostua comprendre לִכלוֹל समाविष्ट करना, सम्मिलित करना obuhvatiti, sadržavati, uključiti áll (vmiből) mencakup, terdiri dari samanstanda af comprendere ～から成る 포함하다 susidėti iš, apimti ietvert; veidot; sastādīt terdiri bestaan uitinneholde, omfatte, bestå av, utgjørezawierać, obejmować شاملول، ګډول: درلودل لرل: جوړول incluir a cuprinde состоять из zahrnúť, skladať sa vključevati činiti omfatta ประกอบด้วย oluşmak, meydana gelmek 包括，由…所構成 містити в собі, охоплювати مشتمل ہونا bao gồm 包括，构成

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The team comprises (not comprises of) five members.

Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.