To conform means to match the standards, rules, or behaviors expected in a particular situation. When your science project conforms to the teacher's requirements, it follows all the guidelines about length, format, and content. When a building conforms to safety codes, it meets all the official rules about construction.

The word often describes fitting in with what others are doing. Students might conform to dress code rules by wearing appropriate clothes to school. In a new social group, someone might feel pressure to conform by acting like everyone else, even if they'd rather do things differently.

Conforming isn't automatically good or bad. Sometimes it makes perfect sense: conforming to traffic laws keeps everyone safe, and conforming to your team's practice schedule helps everyone improve together. But sometimes people conform just to avoid standing out, even when being different would be better. If everyone in your class gives up on a difficult math problem, conforming means giving up too, while thinking independently might lead you to a solution.

The opposite of conforming is being a nonconformist, someone who deliberately doesn't follow the usual patterns. Scientists and inventors are often nonconformists who succeed precisely because they don't conform to old ways of thinking.