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View synonyms for

adopted

/ əˈɒɪ /

adjective

  1. having been adopted Compare adoptive

    an adopted child

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012


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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

His lawyers raised concerns that if Lucy were adopted by a white family, she would lose her cultural identity.

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Significantly overweight from comforting herself with food, she was never adopted, according to Florida Weekly, instead getting hooked on drugs when she was in high school.

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The idea was not adopted, but the FIA will continue to pursue research on the topic.

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Russia quickly organised a referendum in March 2014 but it was rejected as a sham by the international community and the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution backing Ukrainian sovereignty.

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No one knows at this point what plan is going to be adopted by the president.

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More About Adopted

doesadopted mean?

The adjective adopted is used to describe a person who has been permanently (and typically formally and legally) taken into the custody of an adult or adult couple who act as that person’s parent(s) or guardian(s).

The adjective adopted comes from the past tense form of adopt, which means to take someone in and act as their guardian in this way. The process of adopting is adoption. An adopted person can be called an adoptee.

Many adopted people used the adjective adopted as a way to identify that they are adopted, as in I’m adopted.

The adjective adoptive means related by adoption. A person’s adoptive family is the one they were adopted into. The word can also be applied to specific family members related by adoption, as in adoptive father and adoptive daughter. However, adoptive is most commonly used for parents, while adopted is more commonly applied to a child who has been adopted, as in Their adopted daughter is the newest addition to the family.

Adoption most commonly involves an adult couple or a single adult adopting and raising a child who is no longer in the custody of either of their birth parents (biological parents), such as in cases where they have died or are otherwise unable to care for the child.

Example: The organization provides support for adopted children and their families.

Where doesadopted come from?

The first records of the word adopted as an adjective come from the 1400s. Its base word, adopt, comes from the Latin verb DZ, meaning “to choose for oneself,” from DZ, “to choose.”

Adoption of children is often pursued by people who are unable or who choose not to have biological children, but it can also involve families with their own children adopting other children into the family. A child can also be adopted by a relative, such as an aunt, uncle, or grandparent.

Did you know ... ?

are some other forms related to adopted?

are some synonyms for adopted?

are some words that share a root or word element with adopted?

are some words that often get used in discussing adopted?

How isadopted used in real life?

The word adopted is commonly used by people who have been adopted to identify themselves as being adopted.

Try usingadopted!

Is adopted used correctly in the following sentence?

I’m adopted, and I’ve never felt like I wasn’t a real part of the family.

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