Integrate

To combine separate parts so they function as a coherent whole.

Reach for it when describing deliberate coordination rather than simple addition

The new plan will integrate walking routes with the evening bus network.

• everyday

  combine

  separate things are simply being put together

  not when Combination alone cannot assure a coherent working result.

• professional

  coordinate

  activities remain distinct but operate in alignment

  not when Coordinate stops short of making them one integrated system.

• professional

  embed

  one practice becomes a durable part of another system

  not when Embed describes placement, not mutual integration.

• professional

  unify

  different parts should act as one

  not when Unify can erase useful distinctions that integration preserves.

• formal

  synthesize

  ideas or elements produce a new coherent whole

  not when Synthesize is analytical and less natural for services or teams.

To enable people from different groups to participate together on equal terms.

Reach for it when naming social or institutional inclusion that changes the shared setting

The league worked to integrate new arrivals into every age group.

• warm

  include

  people are invited into participation

  not when Include may add someone without changing barriers or relationships.

• formal

  assimilate

  a person or group is absorbed into a dominant culture

  not when Assimilation can demand lost identity, the opposite of equitable integration.

• formal

  desegregate

  ending enforced racial separation is the precise action

  not when Desegregate is historically and legally specific, unlike broader integration.

• separate
• fragment
• segregate

• integrate services

  The clinic will integrate services so families repeat their story only once.

• integrate fully

  New payment options must integrate fully with the existing ledger.

• integrate newcomers

  Shared projects helped integrate newcomers without asking them to abandon familiar customs.

• Integrated adj.

• Merriam-Webster, verb sense 1: to form, coordinate, or blend into a functioning whole ↗opens in a new tab for meaning 1 · retrieved 2026-07-26
• Merriam-Webster, verb sense 2: to end segregation and bring into equal membership ↗opens in a new tab for meaning 2 · retrieved 2026-07-26

The definition and the example on this page are written here. The dictionaries above ground which meaning is being described, not the wording.