What does entrust mean?
Entrust is a verb meaning to place responsibility for something important into another person's hands because you have confidence in them. It is most often used with two grammatical patterns: you can entrust something to someone, as in 'she entrusted the keys to her neighbour', or entrust someone with something, as in 'he was entrusted with the negotiations'. The word appears frequently in legal, professional, and personal contexts — wills, custody arrangements, delegating duties — anywhere trust and accountability matter. Its connotations are warm and serious at once: entrusting signals genuine faith in another person's competence or integrity, which distinguishes it from neutral terms like 'assign' or 'hand over'. The word derives from 'en-' combined with 'trust', literally meaning to put trust into action by giving something over. A related noun, entrustment, describes the act itself, though it is far less common than the verb.
verbTo give someone the responsibility of doing something or of caring for something valuable, with confidence that they will act appropriately.
- To assign responsibility for something valuable or important to someone you have confidence in.
- To place something in someone's care or safekeeping, often formally or legally.
"She entrusted her grandmother's ring to the family lawyer for safekeeping."
"The board entrusted the new CEO with turning the company around."
"He entrusted the deed to his solicitor before travelling abroad."
For centuries writers couldn't decide whether it was 'intrust' or 'entrust' — even Jane Austen used both spellings before 'entrust' finally won out.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of entrust
Entrust was formed in English during the late sixteenth or early seventeenth century by combining the prefix 'en-' with 'trust'. It arose alongside an alternative spelling, 'intrust', which remained common well into the nineteenth century before falling out of favour. The underlying word 'trust' comes from Old Norse 'traust', related to 'tryst', giving entrust its Germanic rather than Latin roots. Its derivatives include entrusted, entrusting, and the rarer noun entrustment.
Related word forms
How entrust is actually used
Formal to neutral in register; common in legal, business, and personal contexts. It typically takes two patterns: 'entrust something to someone' or 'entrust someone with something' — both are fully standard. The word implies genuine confidence and a sense of responsibility on the recipient's part, so it carries a positive, trusting connotation. The older spelling 'intrusted' is now largely obsolete.
Easily confused with entrust
"Intrusted" is simply a now-dated spelling variant of "entrust" (both mean the same thing), not a different word — modern usage strongly prefers "entrust".