belong

/bi'lɔɳ/

Thân thiện

This book belongs to me.

Definition

1. Verb:
   • To be the property of someone; to be owned by: Indicates possession or rightful ownership.
   • To be a member or part of a group, organization, or category: Indicates affiliation, membership, or classification.
   • To be in the correct or appropriate place or situation: Indicates where something should be located or where it fits naturally.
   • To be suitable or feel accepted in a particular environment or social setting: Indicates a sense of fitting in or being appropriate.

Examples of Usage

• Indicating possession:
  • This book belongs to me. (I own this book.)
  • The house belongs to a local charity. (The charity owns the house.)
• Indicating membership or classification:
  • They belong to the same political party. (They are members of that party.)
  • Whales belong among the mammals. (Whales are classified as mammals.)
• Indicating the correct place or situation:
  • Where do these books belong? (Where is the proper place for these books?)
  • Let's put healthcare where it belongs—under the control of the government. (Let's place it in its appropriate, rightful context.)
• Indicating suitability or acceptance:
  • This student somehow doesn't belong. (This student does not fit in or feel accepted here.)
  • I feel I belong in this community. (I feel accepted and at home here.)

Advanced Usage

• "belong to": This is the most common phrasal construction, used for possession, membership, or affiliation.
  • That idea belongs to the 19th century. (That idea is characteristic of or originated in the 19th century.)
• "belong in/on/with/among": These prepositions specify the nature of the relationship (location, grouping, association).
  • This painting belongs in a museum. (It deserves to be/its rightful place is in a museum.)
  • These tools belong with the gardening supplies. (They should be stored or grouped with those supplies.)
  • He belongs among the great writers of our time. (He is rightly classified as one of them.)

Variants and Related Words

• Belongings (n): Personal possessions or items that one owns.
  • Please gather your belongings before you leave.
• Belonging (n): A feeling of being accepted and happy in a social group or place.
  • She has a strong sense of belonging in her new team.

Synonyms

• Pertain to: Be appropriate, related, or applicable to.
• Be owned by: Be the property of.
• Be a member of: Form part of a group.
• Fit in: Be socially compatible or feel accepted.

Related Phrasal Verbs

• Belong together: To be suited to each other; to form a natural pair or group.
  • Those two friends really belong together; they understand each other perfectly.
• Belong with: To be associated with or should be placed alongside something else.
  • This document belongs with the financial reports. (It should be filed or considered with them.)

Related Idioms

• A sense of belonging: The feeling that you are accepted and connected to a group or place.
  • Joining the club gave him a real sense of belonging.
• To know one's place / where one belongs: To understand and accept one's social position or role. (This can have neutral or negative connotations.)
  • In that old-fashioned company, everyone was expected to know their place.

Học thuật

Verb

1. be a part or adjunct
   • the uniform looks like it belonged to a museum collection
   • These pages don't belong
2. be a member, adherent, inhabitant, etc. (of a group, organization, or place)
   • They belong to the same political party
3. be rightly classified in a class or category
   • The whales belong among the mammals
4. be in the right place or situation
   • Where do these books belong?
   • Let's put health care where it belongs--under the control of the government
   • Where do these books go?
5. be suitable or acceptable
   • This student somehow doesn't belong
6. be owned by; be in the possession of
   • This book belongs to me

Từ đồng nghĩa

• belong to
• go