communicate
Americanverb (used with object)
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communicates,
present (3rd person singular)
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communicated,
past participle, past
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communicating
present participle
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to impart knowledge of; make known.
to communicate information;
to communicate one's happiness.
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to give to another; impart; transmit.
to communicate a disease.
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to administer the Eucharist to.
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Archaic. to share in or partake of.
verb (used without object)
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communicates,
present (3rd person singular)
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communicated,
past participle, past
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communicating
present participle
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to give or interchange thoughts, feelings, information, or the like, by writing, speaking, etc..
They communicate with each other every day.
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to express thoughts, feelings, or information easily or effectively.
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to be joined or connected.
The rooms communicated by means of a hallway.
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to partake of the Eucharist.
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Obsolete. to take part or participate.
verb
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to impart (knowledge) or exchange (thoughts, feelings, or ideas) by speech, writing, gestures, etc
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to allow (a feeling, emotion, etc) to be sensed (by), willingly or unwillingly; transmit (to)
the dog communicated his fear to the other animals
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(intr) to have a sympathetic mutual understanding
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to make or have a connecting passage or route; connect
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(tr) to transmit (a disease); infect
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(intr) Christianity to receive or administer Communion
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
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communicatornoun
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overcommunicateverb
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precommunicateverb
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communicatoryadjective
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noncommunicatingadjective
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uncommunicatingadjective
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well-communicatedadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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communicatesimple
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communicatessimple
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have communicatedperfect
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has communicatedperfect
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am communicatingprogressive
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are communicatingprogressive
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is communicatingprogressive
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have been communicatingperfect progressive
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has been communicatingperfect progressive
Past
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communicatedsimple
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had communicatedperfect
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was communicatingprogressive
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were communicatingprogressive
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had been communicatingperfect progressive
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.
Vocabulary lists containing communicate
TEKS ELAR Academic Vocabulary List (5th-7th grades)
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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:
That’s how they communicate with the judge and the lawyers.
From Slate ● Sep. 4, 2026
He also noted that the city’s housing agency is allowed to communicate with the board.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026
This information can help us determine what chimpanzees are trying to communicate.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 28, 2026
She added that it had worked closely with partners to communicate how the fire affected the city through dedicated online channels.
From BBC ● Aug. 28, 2026
Until not so very long ago, there was no great need for the two to communicate with each other.
From "History of Art, Volume 1" by H.W. Janson
It considers a woman’s own health, not just the baby’s, and communicates risk without shame or a heavy hand.
From Slate ● Aug. 27, 2026
She occasionally communicates through Facebook with my previous spouse, with whom I’m still close.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 21, 2026
Instead, the frontoparietal cortex appears to adjust which brain regions it communicates with according to the information needed at that particular moment.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 20, 2026
An online business the size of Vinted with millions of transactions needs automation and communicates electronically with its users.
From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026
“The transmitter and the liquid that induces the simulation. The transmitter communicates information to the brain from the computer, and vice versa, and the liquid alters the brain to put it in a simulation state.”
From "Insurgent" by Veronica Roth
On Saturday, Osaka said she had never communicated with Iverson — “but hopefully he’ll see this,” she added.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 1, 2026
Sources told BBC Sport that Atletico communicated privately to Alvarez and his advisors earlier this week that they will not negotiate with the Catalan club over a move for the Argentina international.
From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2026
Warsh hasn’t given the intellectual underpinnings for his “swerve” away from how Fed chairs over the past two decades have communicated, Tetlow noted.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 27, 2026
Unions have accused VW of not being straight with workers after the latest plans were first reported by media and only later communicated internally.
From Barron's ● Aug. 25, 2026
As they started to scrub the black slate floor, Moniek communicated through gestures that he had a plan.
From "Surviving Hitler: A Boy in the Nazi Death Camps" by Andrea Warren
Throughout the summer Andy Burnham's been attempting to cultivate a new style of communicating with a steady stream of social media videos designed to speak directly to the public.
From BBC ● Sep. 2, 2026
But he has since remained an elusive public figure -- often seen in a sharp black suit and sunglasses, while largely communicating through social media.
From Barron's ● Sep. 2, 2026
He was “alert, conscious, and communicating with emergency personnel” at the scene, according to the CHP’s Ventura office.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 1, 2026
Those who study conspiracy theories hope that the next federal pandemic response will do a better job of communicating uncertainty.
From Slate ● Aug. 26, 2026
There was the constant background noise of motorbikes roaring in the near distance and the sound of voices communicating in a language I was desperately trying to learn but had yet to master.
From "Proud" by Ibtihaj Muhammad
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.
