notify

verb

no·​ti·​fy ˈnō-tə-ˌfī 

notified; notifying

transitive verb

1

: to give formal notice to

notify a family of the death of a relation

She notified the police about the accident.

2

: to give notice of or report the occurrence of

He notified his intention to sue.

She notified my arrival to the governor.

3

obsolete : to point out

notifier

ˈnō-tə-ˌfī(-ə)r 

noun

Choose the Right Synonym for notify

inform, acquaint, apprise, notify mean to make one aware of something.

inform implies the imparting of knowledge especially of facts or occurrences.

informed us of the crisis

acquaint lays stress on introducing to or familiarizing with.

acquaint yourself with the keyboard

apprise implies communicating something of special interest or importance.

keep us apprised of the situation

notify implies sending notice of something requiring attention or demanding action.

notified the witness when to appear

Examples of notify in a Sentence

Customers were notified of the changes in the company.

I was notified that I did not get the job.

Recent Examples on the Web

At Monday’s hearing in Kansas City, Probation Officer Elvia Abarca told the judge that Rossman had recently committed another probation violation by failing to notify the office of a change of residence. —Judy L. Thomas, Kansas City Star, 8 Apr. 2024

Companies would have to notify consumers about the details of data collection and retention policies and seek consumer permission for significant changes. —David Klepper, Quartz, 7 Apr. 2024

The State Department only needs to notify Congress when a price tag is above a certain threshold. —Edward Wong, New York Times, 6 Apr. 2024

The Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office will identify the victim once next of kin have been notified. —Nicole Lopez, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 6 Apr. 2024

The sensors notify law enforcement that someone has attempted to get on the highway at an exit ramp, Bruning said. —Max Filby, The Enquirer, 5 Apr. 2024

Then officers will attempt to notify the minor's parent or guardian. —Jake Allen, The Indianapolis Star, 4 Apr. 2024

In an April 1 statement from the Skamania County Sheriff's Office, a climbing group reached the summit of the volcano near the Monitor Ridge Climbing Route after authorities were notified on the morning of March 30 of a body discovered. —David Chiu, Peoplemag, 4 Apr. 2024

According to the outlet, the school district notified the families of students of the school about the incident. —Ingrid Vasquez, Peoplemag, 28 Mar. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English notifien, from Anglo-French notifier to make known, from Late Latin notificare, from Latin notus known

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 3

Phrases Containing notify

• pre-notify

Kids Definition

notify

verb

no·​ti·​fy ˈnōt-ə-ˌfī 

notified; notifying

: to give notice to : inform

notify the police

notifier

-ˌfī(-ə)r 

noun

Medical Definition

notify

transitive verb

no·​ti·​fy ˈnōt-ə-ˌfī 

notified; notifying

1

British : to report the occurrence of (a case of communicable disease) or the occurrence of communicable disease in (an individual)

all cases of disease should be notified by the treating consultant

—Practitioner

2

: to give formal notice to

the Broward County Public Health Unit … was notified of three children … hospitalized with encephalitis attributed to cat scratch disease

—Journal of the American Medical Association