merge
gb/mˈɚd͡ʒ/ us/mˈɚd͡ʒ/
B2
English
~ 9000
Senses
0 senses
Verb
B2
action
1
combine things into one
To put two or more things together so they become one thing.
Usage pattern:
to merge [something] with [something]
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes say "mix companies" or "connect companies" instead of "merge companies" when talking about businesses joining together. Use "merge" for official or structural joining, especially for companies or organizations.
Synonyms
combine (The most general term; slightly simpler and more common in everyday speech.)
Antonyms
separate (Means to keep things apart or to divide them, the opposite of bringing them together.)
Collocations
merge two companies
|merge with another firm
|merge departments
|merge operations
|merge data
|plan to merge
Themes
business
|technology
|general
|core_vocabulary
Examples
- The two banks agreed to merge to cut costs and expand their market share.
- Our department will merge with the marketing team next year.
- The app lets you merge multiple PDFs into a single file.
- They decided to merge their ideas into one joint proposal.
- Several small charities merged to form a national organization.
Learner examples
- The two small shops will merge and become one big shop.
- You can merge these two files into one document.
- Our team will merge with the sales team.
- The companies merged to save money.
- We merged our lists of names into one list.
unknown
B2
action
2
move into another traffic lane
When you drive your car into another line of cars so there is now one line of traffic instead of two.
Usage pattern:
to merge [a vehicle] into [traffic/a lane]
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes say "enter the line" or "go to the line" when talking about cars. Use "merge into traffic" or "merge into the lane" to sound natural in driving situations.
Synonyms
join ("Join traffic" is possible but less specific; "merge" is the standard term in driving contexts.)
Antonyms
exit (In driving, you exit a road to leave traffic, which is the opposite of merging into it.)
Collocations
merge into traffic
|merge onto the highway
|cars merge
|lane merges
|merge at the sign
Themes
transport
|daily_life
|transportation
|travel
Examples
- You need to check your mirrors before you merge into the next lane.
- Traffic slows down where the two lanes merge into one.
- The sign warns drivers to merge left ahead.
- She waited for a gap so she could safely merge onto the freeway.
- New drivers often feel nervous when they have to merge into fast-moving traffic.
Learner examples
- Look over your shoulder before you merge into the next lane.
- It is hard to merge onto the busy road.
- Two lanes merge into one after the bridge.
- The blue car did not slow down to merge safely.
- You must signal before you merge into traffic.
Verb
technical
C1
action
3
combine digital data or files
To put two or more computer files, lists, or versions of code together so they become one file or one version.
Usage pattern:
to merge [data/files/branches] into [a single file/version]
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes use "mix" or "join" for technical tasks (e.g. "mix these files"). In computing, "merge" is the standard verb for combining files, branches, or datasets while keeping their contents.
Synonyms
integrate (More formal; often suggests careful, structured combining of systems or data.)
Antonyms
split (To divide one file or dataset into separate parts, the opposite of merging them.)
Collocations
merge files
|merge cells
|merge branches
|merge datasets
|merge documents
Themes
technology
|computing
Examples
- You can merge the two spreadsheets to create a single report.
- Remember to pull the latest changes before you merge your branch into main.
- The software automatically merges duplicate contacts based on their email addresses.
- I need to merge these two PDF files into one before sending the email.
- We wrote a script to merge data from several databases into a central table.
Learner examples
- Click here to merge the two files into one file.
- The program can merge your contact lists.
- He will merge his code into the main project today.
- We merged three tables to make one big table.
- The tool helps you merge many photos into one PDF.
Verb
B2
action
4
blend until boundaries disappear
To slowly come together so that you cannot clearly see where one thing ends and another starts.
Usage pattern:
to merge into [something]
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes use "mix" when they want to describe things slowly becoming hard to separate visually (for example, land and sky at sunset). "Merge" is better when the focus is on boundaries disappearing or things becoming one soft whole.
Synonyms
blend (Very close in meaning; "blend" is slightly more common in everyday speech for soft mixing of colors, sounds, etc.)
Antonyms
stand out (To be clearly different and easy to see, the opposite of merging into something.)
Collocations
colors merge
|merge into the background
|merge with the horizon
|merge into one
|land and sky merge
Themes
nature
|art
|time
|core_vocabulary
Examples
- At sunset, the colors of the sky merge into soft shades of pink and orange.
- The river gradually merges with the sea near the bay.
- His voice seemed to merge with the background music.
- From a distance, the town lights merge into a soft golden glow.
- Over time, her work life and personal life started to merge into one.
Learner examples
- The blue and green colors merge on the painting.
- At night, the mountains merge with the dark sky.
- The singer's voice merges with the music.
- Far away, the road seems to merge with the horizon.
- The days all merge into one during a long holiday.
Noun
technical
C1
event
5
an act of combining code/data
One action or event where computer files, lists, or code are put together to make one new version.
Usage pattern:
a merge of [files/data/branches]
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes say "a merging" instead of "a merge" in technical teams (e.g. "I did a merging"). In software and version control, the natural noun is "a merge" ("I did a merge").
Synonyms
integration (More formal and broader; not limited to files or code, but can include systems or platforms.)
Antonyms
rollback (In software, returning to an earlier version instead of keeping the result of a merge.)
Collocations
code merge
|a clean merge
|merge request
|merge conflict
|perform a merge
Themes
technology
|computing
Examples
- We had to fix several conflicts during the last merge.
- The merge introduced a bug that broke the login page.
- Submit a merge request when your feature is ready for review.
- This merge brings together all the changes from the past week.
- After the merge, delete your old branch to keep the repository clean.
Learner examples
- The merge failed because of a conflict.
- He opened a merge request for his new code.
- We did one big merge at the end of the week.
- After the merge, the project had the latest changes.
- She checked the code before the merge.
Grammar
Dictionary form
merge
IPA
GB/mˈɚd͡ʒ/
US/mˈɚd͡ʒ/
Syllables & stress
merge (1 syllable)
Stress on 1st syllable (merge)
Word forms
Verb
- Base: merge
- 3rd Person Singular: merges
- Present Participle: merging
- Past: merged
Word family
Forms
merges
verb
merging
verb
merged
verb
Core family
merger
noun B2
Related words
mergeable
adjective
Negative and opposite forms
unmerge
verb
Advanced or less common
demerge
verb
demerger
noun
Expressions
mail merge
1/mˈeɪl mˈɚd͡ʒ/
fixed phrase
technical
automatic creation of personalized letters
To use a computer program to take names and other data from a list and put them into a letter or email template, so you quickly make many personalized letters or emails.
Examples
- We used a mail merge to send personalized letters to all our customers.
- Learning how to do a mail merge in Word will save you a lot of time.
- The assistant set up a mail merge to create certificates for every participant.
merge into
1/mˈɚd͡ʒ ˈɪntu/
phrasal verb
move or blend into something
To move or slowly change so that you become part of something else and are no longer separate.
Examples
- Cars must slow down as they merge into the single lane ahead.
- The dark hills merge into the night sky on the horizon.
- Her quiet voice seemed to merge into the sound of the rain.
merge onto
1/mˈɚd͡ʒ ˈɔntu/
phrasal verb
join traffic on a main road
To drive from an entrance road onto a main road or highway so that your car joins the flow of traffic there.
Examples
- When you merge onto the freeway, match your speed to the traffic.
- Be careful as you merge onto the main road; visibility is poor here.
- New drivers often find it stressful to merge onto busy highways.
merge with
1/mˈɚd͡ʒ wˈɪθ/
phrasal verb
join or combine with something
If something merges with another thing, they come together and become one thing or one group.
Examples
- The small startup plans to merge with a larger tech company next year.
- Over time, the two rivers merge with each other and flow into the sea.
- Their local club eventually merged with a national organization to gain more support.