Meaning of find In English

• 0 to discover, especially where a thing or person is, either unexpectedly or by searching, or to discover where to get or how to achieve something:

  • I've just found a ten-pound note in my pocket.

  • I couldn't find Andrew's phone number.

  • You'll find the knives and forks in the left-hand drawer.

  • Researchers are hoping to find a cure for the disease.

  • [ + two objects ] Has he found himself a place to live yet?

  • [ + obj + adj ] She was found unconscious and bleeding.

  • [ + that ] The study found that men who were married lived longer than those who were not.

  • Do you think they'll ever find a way of bringing peace to the region?

  • We're really struggling to find (= get) enough money to pay the rent.

  • After years of abuse from her husband, she eventually found the courage to leave him.

  • I wish I could find (the) time to do more reading.

  • [ + (that) ] We came home to find (that) the cat had had kittens.

  • I found (that) I could easily swim a mile.

  • Many plant and animal species are found only in the rainforests.

  • Vitamin C is found in citrus fruit.

  • I had a map but I still couldn't find my way back to the hotel.

  • She's always finding fault with the way he works.

  • He'll find himself with no friends at all if he carries on behaving this way.

  • We fell asleep on the train and woke up to find ourselves in Calais.

  • Simon spent a year in an ashram in India to find himself.

• 1 to think or feel a particular way about someone or something:

  • [ + obj + noun/adj ] Do you find John difficult to talk to?

  • I don't find him an easy person to get on with.

  • She doesn't find it easy to talk about her problems.

  • [ + -ing verb ] I find living in the city very stressful.

• 2 to make a judgment in a law court:

  • [ + obj + adj ] In a unanimous verdict, the jury found him guilty/not guilty of the murder.

• 3 a good or valuable thing or a special person that has been discovered but was not known about before:

  • This café's quite a find - I had no idea there was anywhere like it around here.

  • A recent find of ancient artefacts is on display at the local museum.

• 4 to see where a thing or person is, either unexpectedly or by searching; discover:

  • I found a ten-dollar bill in my pocket.

  • I hope I can find a place to live near work.

  • Many plant and animal species are found (= exist) only in the rain forests.

  • [ + that clause ] The study found that men who took an aspirin a day have fewer heart attacks.

  • Some insects have been found to live several years without water.

  • She found the courage to leave the town where she was born.

  • Ellen found Sascha, married him, and soon after they had twins.

• 5 to make a judgment in a law court:

  • [ T ] to be found guilty/innocent

• 6 a good or valuable thing or a special person that has been discovered:

  • She’s a real find – singers like her don’t grow on trees.

• 7 to be successful in getting something:

  • find work/employment/a job, etc. I have only managed to find part-time work which doesn't pay anything like what I was earning before.

  • It's very difficult to find good sales people.

  • find an answer As yet we haven't found an answer to the question of what to do when he retires.

  • The company needs to find £5 million by the end of the month to avoid going into administration.

  • Somehow they managed to find £10,000 for a deposit on the apartment.

• 8 to discover where something is:

  • It isn't easy to find their contact details on their website.

  • I can't find the file I created yesterday.

• 9 to discover information or a fact:

  • find that The study found that 60% of small and mid-sized firms in and around Paris reported a drop in sales since the strikes began.

  • We found out that our competitors were selling a similar product at a much higher price.

• 10 to decide on a particular judgment in a court of law:

  • find sb guilty/innocent All three men were found guilty of conspiracy to defraud.

• 11 if you find the time for something, you have enough time for it:

  • You need to find the time to check the figures before you send out the report.

• 12 to decide in a court of law that someone is wrong:

  • The Advertising Standards Authority has found against the multinational in a case that could prove to be significant.

• 13 to decide in a court of law that someone is right:

  • The employment tribunal found in my favour, and I received compensation for losing my job.