implicate
Americanverb (used with object)
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implicates,
present (3rd person singular)
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implicated,
past participle, past
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implicating
present participle
-
to show to be also involved, usually in an incriminating manner.
to be implicated in a crime.
-
to imply as a necessary circumstance, or as something to be inferred or understood.
-
to connect or relate to intimately; affect as a consequence.
The malfunctioning of one part of the nervous system implicates another part.
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Archaic. to fold or twist together; intertwine; interlace.
verb
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to show to be involved, esp in a crime
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to involve as a necessary inference; imply
his protest implicated censure by the authorities
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to affect intimately
this news implicates my decision
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rare to intertwine or entangle
Synonym Usage
See involve.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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implicatesimple
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implicatessimple
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have implicatedperfect
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has implicatedperfect
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am implicatingprogressive
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are implicatingprogressive
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is implicatingprogressive
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have been implicatingperfect progressive
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has been implicatingperfect progressive
Past
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implicatedsimple
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had implicatedperfect
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was implicatingprogressive
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were implicatingprogressive
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had been implicatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of implicate
First recorded in 1530–40; from Latin implicātus, past participle of implicāre “to interweave,” equivalent to im- im- 1 + plicā(re) “to fold” + -ātus -ate 1; see ply 2
Explanation
The verb implicate means "to connect or involve in something." For example, your cousins might implicate you in the planning of a big party for your grandparents. Implicate comes from the Latin word implicare, meaning "to entwine, involve." When you implicate someone, you bring him or her into a group or to pitch in on a project. Implicate can have criminal connotations when it means "to connect in an incriminating manner," like when detectives figure out who drove the getaway car in the bank robbery — that person will be implicated for his or her role in the crime.
Vocabulary lists containing implicate
Just Mercy
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Monster
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Wasn't Me: The Lingo of Laying Blame
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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:
He claimed the department sought to make an example of him because he refused to implicate his superiors in wrongdoing.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026
Messrs. Curtin and Burgess implicate an entire influential field of literature projecting future climate damages.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 29, 2026
The 49-year-old has vowed to implicate officials in the current government in the case.
From Barron's ● Mar. 20, 2026
The files do not implicate Clinton in any wrongdoing; he has not been accused of misconduct by Epstein's victims who have come forward so far, and there is no proof he knew of his crimes.
From BBC ● Feb. 26, 2026
He's sure that Karl understands, sure that Karl knows that Helmuth has taken the blame, sure Karl understands not to say anything that will implicate himself more during his interrogation.
From "The Boy Who Dared" by Susan Campbell Bartoletti
But this division also implicates the nongladiatorial Roman citizens of all social strata.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 3, 2026
Evidence that implicates White also implicates the key outstanding suspects.
From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2025
Nothing about Smith’s conduct implicates either the DOJ policy or the 60-day rule.
From Slate ● Oct. 18, 2024
China rejected the accusation, and experts say that Palau has not presented any evidence that implicates Beijing.
From New York Times ● Jun. 2, 2024
Booth also has left behind clues—among them a business card bearing the name J. Harrison Surratt and a letter from Samuel Arnold, who had been part of the kidnapping plot, that implicates Michael O’Laughlen.
From "Lincoln's Last Days: The Shocking Assassination that Changed America Forever" by Bill O'Reilly
This brain structure has been historically implicated in emotional regulation.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 12, 2026
Taylor Farms said it was removing certain products including guacamoles and salsas from grocery shelves over concerns of salmonella contamination, weeks after the produce supplier recalled lettuce implicated in a widespread cyclospora outbreak.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026
When Mathipa was assigned the case, four months before his own death, he already knew special forces were implicated, but he was trying to secure more evidence.
From BBC ● Aug. 9, 2026
The CJP has set up a legal fund to help meet the expenses of protesters implicated in criminal cases by the police, Saurav Das, another spokesperson for the youth-led movement, said.
From Barron's ● Jul. 27, 2026
Among the people she implicated as witches were two old women who lived several doors from us, from whom I had often received morsels of food.
From "Kaffir Boy: An Autobiography" by Mark Mathabane
“The visual graphic, which was widely circulated online, was mismatched with the table of results, thus implicating both of our formulas,” Bauer said.
From Salon ● Mar. 20, 2026
Mr. Fatafteh confessed to the crime and his DNA was found as implicating evidence.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 19, 2025
His lawyer, Thomas Dickey, earlier told local media he had not "seen any evidence yet" implicating his client.
From BBC ● Dec. 11, 2024
In the case’s latest development, the plaintiffs won a ruling in June that forced into public view material further implicating the Saudis.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 15, 2024
They were hiding the room for themselves and, in the process, implicating me in the biggest heist of all time.
From "Salt to the Sea" by Ruta Sepetys
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.
