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Glite Dictionary
to count on

to count on

700 1.8
To trust a person or thing to do what you need
  • phrasal verb
  • /kaʊnt ɑn/
translation icon : contar con
  • I knew I could count on you to help me finish the project on time.
  • count on support
  • count on help
  • always count on

So Red Foods can count on that every single year.

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Examples

  • Do you know that she hasn't got a single soul that she can count on for help?

    Waterloo Bridge (1931)

  • But they know they can always count on Jack to save the day.

    Academic text (2011)

  • So you can really count on them to set and stay.

  • You can count on me.

    The Magnificent Seven (1960)

  • We are counting on you.

    Emmanuelle (2024)

  • I'm counting on you to bring him in.

    Scared to Death (1980)

  • And they're counting on you, right, to make this work.

    Tim Ferriss

  • Any country whose people conduct themselves well can count on a hearty friendship.

  • Look, Ced's counting on you.

    HIM (2025)

  • The results assured Obama that he could count on Muslim votes.

    Academic text (2013)

Synonyms

to trust
vsto count on
∞ 1.0

To believe someone will do what they say

highlights expecting someone to do what you need rather than mere belief
to rely
vsto count on
791 1.1

To trust someone or something to give you help

emphasizes practical reliance on someone to do what you need
to rely on
vsto count on
602 1.0

Trust a person or thing to do what you expect

is about general dependence on someone to meet your needs
to depend
vsto count on
352 1.0

To rely on a person or thing for help

places stronger emphasis on expecting concrete actions from someone
to depend on
vsto count on
309 1.0

Need help or support from something to live

is narrower, focusing on expecting specific help rather than wide need
to rely upon
vsto count on
33 2.3

Trust someone or something to do what you need

focuses more on needing someone to act than on strong belief
to depend upon
vsto count on
8 2.5

To trust a person or thing to give support

is more neutral and used in everyday expectation of action

How Reliable

to rely on
602 1.0
to count on
700 1.8
to depend on
309 1.0

Surface Forms

count on infinitive
counted on past
counted on past participle
counting on present participle
counts on third person singular

Morphology

count + on

The meaning 'to depend on' is directly derived from combining 'count' (here meaning 'to rely on') with the preposition 'on' which marks the target of reliance; a learner who knows these constituent senses can infer the phrasal verb. This verb+preposition composition is cross-linguistically common (e.g., Spanish contar con, French compter sur), supporting immediate transparency for B1 learners.

Etymology

Count on comes from the image of including someone when you count — like putting their name on a list or counting them on your fingers. So, if you count on someone you are sure they will help or be there, meaning 'to depend on'.