delete
Americanverb (used with object)
verb
Usage
What is basic definition of delete? Delete means to remove or destroy something, specifically something that is written, printed, or stored on a computer.Before the Internet, delete often referred to removing something from drafts of books, letters, newspapers, and other materials. Today, delete often refers to either hitting a key on a keyboard that erases text or telling a computer to get rid of a file, as by placing a document in the trash can. A person may also want to delete (deactivate) a social media account.
- Real-life examples: When you’re writing an essay, you might delete some paragraphs and add others. To better use data storage space, you might delete all of your junk email or delete a bunch of photos from your smartphone.
- Used in a sentence: The reporter deleted the final two paragraphs of the story in order to make it shorter.
Related Words
See cancel.
Other Word Forms
- deletable adjective
- redelete verb (used with object)
- undeleted adjective
Etymology
Origin of delete
1485–95; < Latin dēlētus (past participle of dēlēre to destroy), equivalent to dēl- destroy + -ē- thematic vowel + -tus past participle suffix
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.
When rendering spoken words in print, it’s standard practice to delete the “uhs” and “ums” and “likes,” remove irrelevant false starts and silently correct the minor errors of grammar and syntax endemic to human speech.
From Salon
You know the drill: Pay more or start deleting.
As the backlash against Fanatics picked up steam, the Red Sox deleted its original statement from X and posted multiple clarifications.
From Los Angeles Times
Then in 2018, the state passed another unprecedented bill that required all companies give California users certain privacy rights, such as a chance to opt out of data collection and delete some of their information.
From Los Angeles Times
The Mail on Sunday newspaper revealed that the data has now been deleted by both "internal and external" users.
From BBC
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.
