dictate
Americanverb (used with object)
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to say or read (something) aloud for another person to transcribe or for a machine to record.
to dictate some letters to a secretary.
-
to prescribe or lay down authoritatively or peremptorily; command unconditionally.
to dictate peace terms to a conquered enemy.
verb (used without object)
-
to say or read aloud something to be written down by a person or recorded by a machine.
-
to give orders.
noun
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an authoritative order or command.
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a guiding or governing principle, requirement, etc..
to follow the dictates of one's conscience.
- Synonyms:
- bidding
verb
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to say (messages, letters, speeches, etc) aloud for mechanical recording or verbatim transcription by another person
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(tr) to prescribe (commands) authoritatively
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(intr) to act in a tyrannical manner; seek to impose one's will on others
noun
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an authoritative command
-
a guiding principle or rule
the dictates of reason
Other Word Forms
- dictatingly adverb
- misdictated adjective
- predictate verb (used with object)
- redictate verb
- undictated adjective
Etymology
Origin of dictate
First recorded in 1585–95; from Latin dictātus “said repeatedly,” past participle of dictāre “to say repeatedly, order, prescribe,” from dīcere “to say, speak, tell”
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.
We’re living in a world where your purchase history, browsing speed and even your ZIP code increasingly dictate the cost of your life.
From MarketWatch
Australia holds roughly 37 days' worth of petrol in reserve, according to government figures, far below the 90-day minimum dictated by the International Energy Agency.
From Barron's
He's going to dictate his own time and terms.
From BBC
“The play on the field is amazing, and then with what the play has dictated and determined there is a responsibility in terms of representing all things not exclusive to just that,” McVay said.
From Los Angeles Times
The market is due to see a rolling supply disruption unfolding “sequentially rather than simultaneously” — moving westward, “dictated by shipping times and buffered unevenly by regional inventories.”
From MarketWatch
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.
