Attends

Attends is the third-person singular present tense of the verb attend. It is used to indicate that a subject is present at an event or location, participates in activities, or takes care of someone or something (as in attend to a patient).

Etymology: Attends derives from Old French atendre, from Latin attendere “to stretch toward, to direct one’s attention to,” ultimately meaning to be present or to give attention. The sense of being present at an event or place developed through these roots.

Usage and examples: In contemporary English, attend describes presence or participation: “She attends university” or “They attend the meeting.” It can describe care or attention with the phrasal verb attend to: “The nurse attends to the patient.” The past tense is attended; the noun form is attendance, referring to the act of attending or the number of people present. The related noun attendee denotes a person who attends.

Forms and related terms: Base form attend; present participle attending; past tense attended; third-person singular present attends. Related nouns include attendance (the act or state of attending) and attendee (a person who attends). Distinct from other senses of wait or observe, attend emphasizes presence, participation, or care.

Notes: Attends is common in formal and informal contexts and often appears in schedules, reports, and descriptions of services. It should not be confused with attendances in other languages or with nouns that differ in meaning, such as attendance or attendee.