allocate

American  

[al-uh-kayt] / ˈæl əˌkeɪt /

verb (used with object)

• allocates,
  present (3rd person singular)
• allocated,
  past participle,  past
• allocating
  present participle

1. 

   to set apart for a particular purpose; assign or allot.

   to allocate funds for new projects.

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allocate British  

/ ˈæləˌkeɪt /

verb

1. to assign or allot for a particular purpose

2. a less common word for locate

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Synonym Usage

See assign.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• allocator
  noun
• deallocate
  verb (used with object)
• reallocate
  verb (used with object)
• allocatable
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• allocating
  present
• allocated
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• allocate
  simple
• allocates
  simple
• have allocated
  perfect
• has allocated
  perfect
• am allocating
  progressive
• are allocating
  progressive
• is allocating
  progressive
• have been allocating
  perfect progressive
• has been allocating
  perfect progressive

Past

• allocated
  simple
• had allocated
  perfect
• was allocating
  progressive
• were allocating
  progressive
• had been allocating
  perfect progressive

Future

• will allocate
  simple
• will have allocated
  perfect
• will be allocating
  progressive
• will have been allocating
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of allocate

First recorded in 1630–40; from Medieval Latin allocātus (past participle of allocāre ), equivalent to al- al- + loc(us) “place” + -ātus -ate ¹

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Explanation

To allocate is to set aside a certain amount of money for an expense. You usually hear about the government allocating funds for education or the military, but you may personally allocate some of your allowance to buying comic books. Aside from money, a common thing to allocate is time: "The old woman in the shoe had so many children she could only allocate 2.7 minutes per day to talk to each one individually." Resources are also often allocated. Teachers, for example, are continuously allocating their year's supply of resources so they don't run out of glue sticks and paper before the end of the school year.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

allocate allocates allocated allocating

As for the Port of Los Angeles, the amendment would require the Los Angeles Board of Harbor Commissioners to annually allocate a portion of the harbor’s operating income to investments in waterfront public access projects.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 31, 2026

Here’s a simple rule: Every time you get a raise, allocate half of it to savings automatically before it ever reaches your checking account.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 26, 2026

Overall, the results showed that MTCH2 is a powerful regulator of how cells allocate nutrients between energy production and other biological needs.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 24, 2026

The chancellor plans to allocate the money for a full feasibility study on the possibility for a bid for a "Northern Games".

From BBC ● Oct. 24, 2026

The financial markets paid a lot of people extremely well for narrow expertise and a few people, poorly, for the big, global views you needed to have if you were to allocate capital across markets.

From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis

France's online platform that allocates places in higher education, Parcoursup, is another sore point.

From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026

The average U.S. household spends about $1,100 each month on transportation, twice as much as this budget allocates.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 15, 2026

Jane Street, which rarely allocates money to outside managers, became a major investor in the hedge fund.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026

County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a motion to hire a consultant to reevaluate how the county allocates Measure B funds.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026

It allocates natural resources, and controls the issue of credit.

From Public Opinion by Walter Lippmann

This frequency is internationally allocated for industrial, scientific, and medical applications.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 2, 2026

Tenney, of the Putnam County Development Authority, was one of local officials who spoke out against earlier versions of the law that allocated nothing to local governments.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 30, 2026

Jails: In 2020, 57% of county voters approved Measure J. This mandated that at least 10% of locally generated, unrestricted revenue be allocated to incarceration alternatives.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 30, 2026

Institutional investors’ bids eclipsed the shares allocated to them by 70 times.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 28, 2026

He began lobbying officials there to include the various second-line antibiotics on their list of “essential drugs”—a list that the ministries followed and allocated money for in their budgets.

From "Mountains Beyond Mountains" by Tracy Kidder and Michael French

But in discussions over new, much-needed funding over the summer, it became clear that senior Novatek executives were really calling the shots and allocating capital, Riddle said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 24, 2026

The municipality, he alleged, was increasingly allocating public buildings and resources to the ultra-Orthodox community.

From Barron's ● Oct. 13, 2026

The motion calls for allocating millions of dollars annually to fully fund nine county-run self-help legal centers that assist people navigating the restraining order process.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026

When it came to allocating the homes, NIHE's points-based system was used in conjunction with a local Rathlin lettings policy which included having a connection to the island.

From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2026

Congress had signaled its enthusiasm for an expanded AEC program by allocating the agency a healthy budget for research, he explained.

From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik

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Related Words

• allot
• apportion
• appropriate
• designate
• earmark
• give
• set aside

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