TKG English Learner's Dictionary

commit

commitverb

American /kəˈmɪt/ British /kəˈmɪt/ The stress is on the second part: kuh-MIT. The t is doubled before -ed and -ing: committed, committing.
third-person singular commits past tense committed past participle committed present participle committing
fairly common

To commit is to do or give something in a way that is hard to take back: a wrong act, a firm promise, money or time, or a person sent away by law.

  1. a crimedo something wrong or against the law

    transitive [T] verb + object [V + obj]

    Collocations

    verb + noun commit a crime, commit murder, commit an offense, commit a sin

  2. promisepromise firmly to do something or to support someone or something

    Used with to and a noun or an -ing form. Commit someone to something means making them promise it: The contract commits us to three years of payments. Without an object, commit often means staying with one partner in a long relationship.

    transitive or intransitive [T/I] verb + preposition + object [V + prep + obj] verb + object + preposition + object [V + obj + prep + obj]

    Collocations

    verb + preposition commit to something, commit to doing something
    phrase commit yourself to something, fully commit

  3. money or timedecide to use money, time, or people for a particular purpose

    transitive [T] verb + object + preposition + object [V + obj + prep + obj] verb + object [V + obj]

    Collocations

    verb + noun commit money, commit funds, commit time, commit resources

  4. send awayofficially send someone to a prison, or to a hospital for mental illness, usually without their agreement

    transitive [T] verb + object + preposition + object [V + obj + prep + obj] usually passive [usually passive] formallaw

    Collocations

    phrase commit someone to prison, be committed to a psychiatric hospital

Word family

  • commitment
  • committed

Usage

In sense 2, to is a preposition, so it is followed by a noun or an -ing form, not by the base form of a verb: committed to improving, not committed to improve.

Common mistakes

We are committed to improve our service. We are committed to improving our service.
After commit to and committed to, use an -ing form, because to is a preposition here.
She commited the crime alone. She committed the crime alone.
Double the t before -ed and -ing: committed, committing.

For translators

Meaning across languages "commit" covers doing a crime, promising, giving money or time, and officially sending someone to prison or to a mental hospital. Many languages need a different verb for each of these.
Grammar trap In commit to something, to is a preposition, so it takes a noun or an -ing form: commit to working harder, not commit to work harder.