advocate
Americanverb (used with object)
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advocates,
present (3rd person singular)
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advocated,
past participle, past
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advocating
present participle
verb (used without object)
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advocates,
present (3rd person singular)
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advocated,
past participle, past
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advocating
present participle
noun
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advocates
plural
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a person who speaks or writes in support or defense of a person, cause, etc. (usually followed byof ).
an advocate of peace.
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a person who pleads for or in behalf of another; intercessor.
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a person who pleads the cause of another in a court of law.
verb
noun
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a person who upholds or defends a cause; supporter
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a person who intercedes on behalf of another
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a person who pleads his client's cause in a court of law See also barrister solicitor counsellor
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Scots law the usual word for barrister
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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advocatornoun
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nonadvocatenoun
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preadvocatenoun
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subadvocatenoun
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preadvocateverb (used with object)
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readvocateverb (used with object)
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advocativeadjective
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advocatoryadjective
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unadvocatedadjective
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well-advocatedadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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advocatesimple
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advocatessimple
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have advocatedperfect
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has advocatedperfect
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am advocatingprogressive
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are advocatingprogressive
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is advocatingprogressive
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have been advocatingperfect progressive
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has been advocatingperfect progressive
Past
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advocatedsimple
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had advocatedperfect
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was advocatingprogressive
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were advocatingprogressive
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had been advocatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of advocate
First recorded in 1300–50; from Latin advocātus “legal counselor,” originally past participle of advocāre “to call to one's aid,” equivalent to ad- ad- + vocāre “to call” (akin to vōx voice ); replacing Middle English avocat, from Middle French
Explanation
An advocate (AD-və-kit) is someone who supports a cause, like an advocate for outdoor recess. Advocate (AD-və-kate) is also a verb meaning to speak in favor of, so you can advocate for that outdoor recess by urging your school to play outside! As a noun, an advocate is a person who represents another person’s interests, like a lawyer does. In fact, the word comes from the courtroom — it’s from Latin advocare, to “add” a “voice.” To advocate is to add a voice of support to a cause or person. An advocate is anyone who adds that voice by representing another person in court, or by supporting or working toward a particular course of action.
Vocabulary lists containing advocate
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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The SAT: Words to Capture Tone, List 1
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300 Most Difficult "SAT" Words
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Bonino met a leading women's rights advocate, embraced civil disobedience and began accompanying women to a Florentine abortion clinic.
From Barron's ● Sep. 11, 2026
The register allows them to advocate on behalf of their interests and is part of the EU's attempts to keep the process open and accountable.
From Barron's ● Sep. 11, 2026
Rachel Canter is the Director of Education Policy for the Reinventing America’s Schools project at the Progressive Policy Institute and the founder of Mississippi First, an advocate for education initiatives in Mississippi.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 10, 2026
Councilmember Ysabel Jurado, who oversees the district, said in a statement that her team has regularly met with the transit agency to advocate for Eagle Rock’s needs.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026
The reporter, Jake Phelps, was, in fact, a longtime advocate of civil rights, though he tried to hide his sympathies from the paper.
From "The Best of Enemies" by Osha Gray Davidson
Veterans groups and advocates who shaped the 2016 draft plan contend the housing was tacked on to allow the VA to avoid the cost of rehabilitating the building.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026
And as more laws are put on the books -- and an ever-expanding number of sectors seek advocates to make their case in Brussels -- the industry shows no sign of slowing down.
From Barron's ● Sep. 11, 2026
The government is seeking feedback from digital platforms, industry bodies, civil society organisations and advocates on the draft laws.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026
Paxton’s move to significantly revalue his assets without explaining why is “very strange,” said Margaret Dylus-Yukins, senior counsel for ethics at the nonpartisan Campaign Legal Center, which advocates for strong disclosure rules.
From Salon ● Sep. 5, 2026
That expectation seems unreasonable, yet the dilemma for racial justice advocates is a real one.
From "The New Jim Crow" by Michelle Alexander
He advocated for a balance between progress and democracy, calling for more open-source AI agents.
From Salon ● Sep. 4, 2026
Frostadóttir, who had advocated for Iceland to negotiate with the EU, said her government won’t pursue membership during its four-year term, which ends in 2028.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 31, 2026
His parents Frances and Ceri Menai-Davis have advocated for a change to employment law that would require employers to guarantee three months' salaries to parents whose child faces serious physical or mental illness.
From BBC ● Aug. 31, 2026
After his son’s death, the Republican lawmaker spearheaded legislation in 2023 that made sexual extortion a felony offense in South Carolina and has advocated for online safety.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 28, 2026
Johanna told me once that if the decisions had been up to her, she would have supported action against Erudite instead of the passivity the rest of her faction advocated.
From "Allegiant" by Veronica Roth
If England go out early in next year's Rugby World Cup, it will be difficult to find anyone advocating for a further contract extension for Borthwick, who was appointed in December 2022.
From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026
She helps facilitate the Outdoor Equity program aimed at helping young people of color find belonging in outdoor spaces through hiking, camping, and kayaking, while advocating around environmental racism and access to nature.
From Slate ● Sep. 5, 2026
Having stopped full-time work in May, Ren spends his days caring for Huanle and advocating for his wife -- posting case updates to an X account with a few hundred followers.
From Barron's ● Aug. 25, 2026
Julie Meyer Rowett, an elder-law attorney who has been advocating for estate-recovery reform in Oregon, took the case on a pro bono basis.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 25, 2026
He stressed the ANC’s long history of advocating change, noting that the ANC was the oldest national African organization in the country, having been founded in 1912.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
