confer

C1 Topic:Actions & Processes

US /kənˈfʌɹ/ UK /kənˈfɜː/ See IPA manual

Freq #21594

Meanings

1

verb
To talk with others in order to discuss something or reach a decision.

The lawyers stepped outside to confer about the plan of action.
2

verb
To officially give an honour, title, or right to someone.

The college conferred an honorary degree upon the visiting Prime Minister.

Verb forms

Verb forms are not available for this word yet.

Multiword verbs with confer

confer with Prepositional verb C1

to consult someone for advice or discussion

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 verb · to talk with others in... consult confab

2 verb · to officially give an... bestow afford

Word family

Forms conferredconferringconfers

Derived forms confereeconfermentconferrableconferralconferrerreconferunconferred

Related forms cf collate collation conference

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

confer with
to consult someone for advice or discussion

Verb + preposition/particle

Simplified etymology

Confer entered English in the late Middle English period and comes from the Latin ferre, meaning “bring”; the source describes confer as “bring together.”

Etymology

From Early Modern English conferre, from Middle French conférer, from Old French conferer, from Latin cōnferō. Compare Dutch confereren, German konferieren, Danish konferere, Swedish konferera. Doublet of collate. See also infer, relate and refer, delate and defer, as well as prelate and prefer among others.

*bʰer- Proto-Indo-European

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Actions & Processes Word Formation & Derivatives

External links

# confer

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C1
**Part of speech:** verb
**IPA (US):** /kənˈfʌɹ/
**IPA (UK):** /kənˈfɜː/
**Frequency rank:** 21594

## Meanings
1. To talk with others in order to discuss something or reach a decision.
2. To officially give an honour, title, or right to someone.

## Examples
- The lawyers stepped outside to confer about the plan of action.
- The college conferred an honorary degree upon the visiting Prime Minister.

## Derived Forms
- conferee
- conferment
- conferrable
- conferral
- conferrer
- reconfer
- unconferred

## Related Forms
- cf
- collate
- collation
- conference

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: *bʰer-

## Etymology
From Early Modern English conferre, from Middle French conférer, from Old French conferer, from Latin cōnferō. Compare Dutch confereren, German konferieren, Danish konferere, Swedish konferera. Doublet of collate. See also infer, relate and refer, delate and defer, as well as prelate and prefer among others.

## AI Etymology
Confer is from Early Modern English conferre, from Middle French conférer, from Old French conferer, from Latin cōnferō. Compare Dutch confereren, German konferieren, Danish konferere, Swedish konferera. Doublet of collate. See also infer, relate and refer, delate and defer, as well as prelate and prefer among others. Important recorded forms include *bʰer- (Proto-Indo-European). Current senses include to talk with others in order to discuss something or reach a decision and to officially give an honour, title, or right to someone. The wider family includes derived forms such as conferee, conferment, conferrable, conferral, and conferrer and related words such as cf, collate, collation, and conference.

## Topics
- Actions & Processes
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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