• (Received Pronunciation)IPA^(key):/bɪˈlɒŋ/
• (General American)enPR:bĭ-lôngʹ,IPA^(key):/bɪˈlɔŋ/
  • (cot–caught merger)IPA^(key):/bɪˈlɑŋ/

• Audio(US):

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• Hyphenation:be‧long
• Rhymes:-ɒŋ

FromMiddle Englishbelongen,bilongen, fromMiddle Englishbe- +longen(“to be fitting, be suitable”), fromOld Englishlangian(“to pertain to, suit”), equivalent tobe- +‎long(“to belong”). CompareSaterland Frisianbeloangje(“to attain, reach, meet”),Dutchbelangen(“to concern”),Germanbelangen(“to sue, concern”).

belong (third-person singular simple presentbelongs,present participlebelonging,simple past and past participlebelonged)

1. (intransitive) To have itsproperplace.

   Where does this bookbelong? Itbelongs on the top shelf.

   1. (of a person) To beaccepted in agroup.

      You don’tbelong here — get out.

   2. (followed byto) To be apart of a group.

      I don’tbelong to them!

2. (intransitive, followed byto) To be part of, or theproperty of.

   That housebelongs to me.

   • 1897 December (indicated as1898),Winston Churchill, chapter II, inThe Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.:The Macmillan Company; London:Macmillan & Co., Ltd.,→OCLC:

     Sunning himself on the board steps, I saw for the first time Mr. Farquhar Fenelon Cooke. He was dressed out in broad gaiters and bright tweeds, like an English tourist, and his face might havebelonged to Dagon, idol of the Philistines.

   • 1927,F. E. Penny, chapter 4, inPulling the Strings:

     A turban and loincloth soaked in blood had been found; also a staff. These properties were known to havebelonged to a toddy drawer. He had disappeared.

3. (intransitive, followed byto) To be thespouse orpartner of.(Can we add anexample for this sense?)
4. (intransitive,set theory) (followed byto) To be anelement of (aset). The symbol${\displaystyle \in }$  meansbelongs to.

   Suppose${\displaystyle x}$ belongs to${\displaystyle \mathbb{R}}$ …(written${\displaystyle x\in \mathbb{R}}$ )

5. (obsolete,transitive) To bedeserved by.
   • 1953,Ben Jonson,Timber: Or, Discoveries‎^[1], page70:

     More evilsbelong us than happen to us.

• This is generally astative verb that rarely takes the continuous inflection. SeeCategory:English stative verbs

• ⇒ Chinese Pidgin English:belong
• → Jersey Dutch:belânge
• → Tok Pisin:bilong

• “belong”, inOneLook Dictionary Search.

CompareAustralian Kriolblanga,Bislamablong,Tok Pisinbilong, andTorres Strait Creoleblong.

• blung,b'longta,b'longa,belonga,blonga

belong

1. (Australian Aboriginal, optionally followed byto)Of,belonging to.
   • 1915, E. R. Masson,Untamed Territory:

     Jim Campbell, Charlie, Dick, ... Fred, lubrab’longa him, me, thass all.

   • 1936, M. & E. Durack,Chunuma:

     By an’ bye ’im grow ’m up make ’m good fella stockmanb’longta you.

   • 1977, N. Kolig,Playing Alonga Mud:

     Those who had persevered with the course and had acquired some skill were now almost deferentially called ‘Maban (expert)belonga clay’.

   • 1986 December,Kowanyama News:

     Them two bin help’m too, and that fatherblung to this one old Frank.

   • 1986, B. Shaw,Countrymen:

     There’s the bloke that’s kill that feller, unclebelong you an me.

   • 1991, D. B. Rose,Hidden Histories:

     Get that fire [wood] stacked up like that tree there, that high ... It wasn’t woodbelong to that fire pile. Might be for station, or somebody else, you know.

FromEnglishbelong. CompareTok Pisinbilong.

belong

1. of;belonging to
   • 1862,唐景星 [Tong King-sing],英語集全 [Chinese English Instructor], volume IV, marginalia, page53; republished as “Pidgin English texts from theChinese English Instructor”, in Michelle Li, Stephen Matthews, Geoff P. Smith, editors,Hong Kong Journal of Applied Linguistics‎^[2], volume10, number 1,2005, pages79-167:

     地士鼻郎㕭
     *di⁶ si⁶bi⁶ long⁴ ju¹
     Thiseebelong you?
     Is this yours?

• Umberto Ansaldo, Stephen Matthews, Geoff Smith (2010) “China Coast Pidgin: Texts and contexts”, inJournal of Pidgin and Creole Languages‎^[3], volume25, number 1,→DOI, pages63-94