inform

To tell someone facts or news about something.

• Please inform your teacher.
• They informed us of the delay.
• Did anyone inform you that the meeting was cancelled?

How to use it: inform someone of/about something (Please inform us of any changes.); inform someone that… (She informed me that the office was closed.)

Similar words: tell, notify

Common phrases: inform someone, inform the public, inform someone promptly

To provide knowledge that helps someone form an opinion or make a decision.

• Research will inform our decision.
• Her experience informed her views on education.
• The findings should inform future policy.

Similar words: guide, influence

Common phrases: inform a decision, inform policy, inform someone’s opinion

To give something a particular quality or character by influencing it throughout.

• Humor informs all her writing.
• His faith informed every painting he made.
• A love of nature informs the whole collection.

Similar words: shape, influence, pervade

Common phrases: inform someone’s work, inform everything, inform someone’s writing

To act as a guide for how someone behaves or how something is done.

• These principles inform our daily practice.
• A strict code informs the profession’s conduct.
• Respect for patients should inform every action.

Similar words: guide, direct

Common phrases: inform professional practice, inform someone’s conduct, inform someone’s actions