agree
- 1To be in harmony with one or more people about an opinion, statement, or action.
Most of the committee members agree on the new policy.
The two scientists agreed that the data needed review.
UsageAgree with a person, about or on a topic, or that + a clause. Say I agree (not
incorrect: I am agree).Similarconcur
Oppositedisagree, differ, dissent
Note
Its history runs from pleasing to concurring. What suited you became a view you shared. Thomas Lodge in 1594 already has two foes who "can never well agree."
- 2To say yes to something proposed or asked, such as a request, plan, or the terms of a contract; to consent.
The board agreed to the merger after lengthy discussion.
If you agree to these terms, sign your name at the bottom of the page.
UsageYou agree to a plan, terms or a request, or agree to do something. Compare agree with a person.
Similaraccept
Oppositereject
- 3To come to terms with another party by settling differences, exchanging promises, or fixing a price.
After hours of bargaining, the two sides agreed on the terms of sale.
Neighbors often agree on a shared fence line to avoid disputes.
UsageToday the terms usually follow on: two sides agree on a price, a date or the rules.
Similarsettle
Note
The bargaining sense is clearest in the King James Bible of 1611: "didst not thou agree with me for a penny?" The construction there is agree with a person for a price. The same text urges "Agree with thine adversary quickly," meaning settle before the matter reaches the judge.
- 4To give formal approval to something, such as a plan, figure, or proposal.
The hospital board will meet on Monday to agree its spending plan for the coming year.
The finance committee agreed the final figures late on Thursday, so the report could go out the next morning.
UsageWith no preposition: a board agrees a plan or agrees the figures. American English usually says agree on or agree to.
Similarapprove, endorse, ratify
Note
Governments agree a treaty, parties agree a bargain, and The Sunday Business Post in 2011 ran the headline "Bishops agree sex abuse rules." The pattern is old, not a newspaper shortcut: Samuel Pepys wrote in 1665 that "we did agree a bargain of £5,000."
- 5To resemble, coincide with, or correspond to something else; to tally.
The figures in the ledger agree with the bank statement.
His account of events agrees closely with the photographs.
UsageThings agree with each other, often closely: the figures agree with the bank statement.
Similartally, correspond, match, coincide, accord
Less common meanings
- 6To regard a practice, policy, or course of action as right or morally acceptable; usually followed by "with".
She has never agreed with the death penalty, whatever the crime.
Most of the staff don't agree with the new policy of tracking employees' emails.
UsageOften in the negative, with a practice or an -ing form: don't agree with zoos, don't agree with hitting children.
Oppositedisapprove, oppose
Note
The object is a practice rather than a claim, so the verb passes judgment instead of reporting a shared opinion. Agree to is a different construction: it accepts a proposal, sometimes reluctantly, without saying the thing is right.
- 7To suit someone or have a beneficial effect, especially of food, drink, or climate.
A quiet life by the coast seems to agree with him.
The new climate agreed with the whole family.
UsageThe thing is the subject and the person follows with: sea air agrees with him; rich food doesn't agree with me.
Similarsuit
Oppositedisagree
- 8To take a form appropriate to a related word's grammatical features, such as its gender, number, case, or person.
In Spanish, adjectives agree with their nouns in both number and gender.
The verb agrees with the subject in person and number.
UsageA word agrees with another in a category: the verb agrees with its subject in number.
Note
Grammarians use the word for forms that must match. A verb agrees with its subject in person and number, and an adjective agrees with its noun in gender and number. Languages differ in how far the matching reaches: in Romanian the articles, and most adjectives and pronouns, match their noun in gender, number and case.
Practice
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Origin
Behind it lies the Proto-Indo-European root *gʷerH- ("to welcome, greet, praise"), the source of Latin gratum ("pleasing"); with ad ("to") this became a gré ("favorably"), from which Old French made agreer ("to accept or receive kindly"), and Middle English took that as agreen.