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Synonyms

communicate

American

[kuh-myoo-ni-kayt] / kəˈmju nɪˌkeɪt /

verb (used with object)

to impart knowledge of; make known.

to communicate information;
to communicate one's happiness.

Synonyms:

reveal, disclose, announce, divulge

Antonyms:

conceal, withhold
to give to another; impart; transmit.

to communicate a disease.
to administer the Eucharist to.
Archaic. to share in or partake of.

verb (used without object)

to give or interchange thoughts, feelings, information, or the like, by writing, speaking, etc..

They communicate with each other every day.
to express thoughts, feelings, or information easily or effectively.
to be joined or connected.

The rooms communicated by means of a hallway.
to partake of the Eucharist.
Obsolete. to take part or participate.

communicate British

/ kəˈmjuːnɪˌkeɪt /

verb

to impart (knowledge) or exchange (thoughts, feelings, or ideas) by speech, writing, gestures, etc
to allow (a feeling, emotion, etc) to be sensed (by), willingly or unwillingly; transmit (to)

the dog communicated his fear to the other animals
(intr) to have a sympathetic mutual understanding
to make or have a connecting passage or route; connect
(tr) to transmit (a disease); infect
(intr) Christianity to receive or administer Communion

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Synonym Usage

Communicate, impart denote giving to a person or thing a part or share of something, now usually something immaterial, as knowledge, thoughts, hopes, qualities, or properties. Communicate, the more common word, implies often an indirect or gradual transmission: to communicate information by means of letters, telegrams, etc.; to communicate one's wishes to someone else. Impart usually implies directness of action: to impart information.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

Inflected Forms

Participles

Conjugated Forms

Present

Past

Future

Etymology

Origin of communicate

First recorded in 1520–30; from Latin commūnicātus “imparted,” past participle of commūnicāre “to impart, make common,” equivalent to commūn(is) common + -icāre, verb suffix

Explanation

To communicate is to exchange words, feelings, or information with others. They did communicate through texting and picture sharing, but the hug he gave his mom when he came home from college communicated more love than any instant message. There are countless ways to communicate! Using an exclamation point in the first sentence is a way to communicate excitement at the many ways to use communicate. A facial expression can communicate joy or anger, and something written can communicate ideas and instructions. Cave men learned to communicate by drawing on cave walls, and people in modern times communicate electronically. Up close or far away, humans and animals — and some would say extraterrestrials, too — are born to communicate.

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Vocabulary lists containing communicate

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STAAR Grade 7 Reading: The Language of the Test, List 1

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UCPS 6th Grade Roots List #1

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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:

communicate communicates communicated communicating

In early 2024, the Houthis established an administrative entity called the Humanitarian Operations Coordination Center to handle shippers’ applications and communicate the Houthis’ own sanctions.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 6, 2026

Police said they have all been bailed with conditions, including locations they cannot travel to and people they cannot communicate with.

From BBC ● Nov. 6, 2026

Cinaciguat restored this signaling process, allowing the liver cells to communicate more effectively and supporting the removal of substances that otherwise tend to accumulate with age.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 3, 2026

Are they not understanding that that weirdly neutral headline that you just wrote doesn’t actually communicate what just happened?

From Salon ● Nov. 2, 2026

Mina’s is in shorthand, and I simply ask Mr. Hawkins to communicate with her.

From "Dracula" by Bram Stoker

When levels rise too high, such as after a meal, the sensor communicates through Bluetooth with a smartphone or smartwatch.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 2, 2026

Fed watchers are focused in particular on how Warsh communicates the central bank’s strategy, with some critics saying that he has been giving “nonanswers.”

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 28, 2026

As a scholar of the American presidency and deliberative democracy, I pay close attention to how the nation’s chief executive exercises power and communicates with the public.

From Salon ● Oct. 27, 2026

But lately the leaders at the 125-year-old law firm spent hours discussing the merits of italics within a custom-made typeface and selecting the exact shade of blue that best communicates the energy of its lawyers.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 14, 2026

“Fie communicates with the genies of the desert.”

From "The Alchemist" by Paulo Coelho

"Currently, we are communicating on a daily basis. I've already communicated with her several times today," he told reporters in Kyiv on Monday, replying to AFP's question about their relations.

From Barron's ● Nov. 3, 2026

He had previously told the court the group was a splinter of the online Irish Citizens Army which communicated on the messaging app Signal, RTÉ has reported.

From BBC ● Oct. 30, 2026

Museum officials, firm leaders and local stakeholders have continually communicated that the gardens would feature “indigenous” or “native” plants.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 29, 2026

An audit by the Postal Service’s inspector general found that agency staff in these areas sometimes didn’t handle ballots correctly, mainly because instructions weren’t clearly communicated.

From Salon ● Oct. 24, 2026

Appreciative eyes that communicated some complicity she was excluded from.

From "Song of Solomon" by Toni Morrison

"Currently, we are communicating on a daily basis. I've already communicated with her several times today," he told reporters in Kyiv on Monday, replying to AFP's question about their relations.

From Barron's ● Nov. 3, 2026

Such extensive facial damage would likely have made eating and communicating extremely painful and difficult.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 31, 2026

The fashion doll, however, did not begin as a toy but as a means of communicating trends between kingdoms and countries.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 31, 2026

He was communicating with teammates during huddles and film sessions.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 23, 2026

“The Carrows never rumbled how we were communicating, it drove them mad. We used to sneak out at night and put graffiti on the walls: Dumbledore’s Army, Still Recruiting, stuff like that. Snape hated it.”

From "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023