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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

"Our reports... help communicate the scale of climate risks and the urgency of mitigation, adaptation and international cooperation."

From Barron's ● Oct. 19, 2026

They remove cellular waste, help maintain the networks through which neurons communicate, and respond when brain tissue is injured.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 18, 2026

Janét said she’s also tried to communicate that masculinity isn’t synonymous with aggression.

From Salon ● Oct. 18, 2026

Everything here relies on digital connectivity - to see, to move, to fly, to communicate, to fire.

From BBC ● Oct. 16, 2026

“She might be trying to communicate with the Shetani and get it to free her. The Kuhani needs to be told immediately.”

From "Beasts of Prey" by Ayana Gray

And as an external panel appointed by Warsh begins considering the best path forward, at least one area is ripe for change — the way the Fed communicates about the economic outlook.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2026

But studies show that infrastructure development and tourism are squeezing its habitat, while increasing noise is altering how it communicates with potential mates and rivals.

From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2026

During the first part of the mission, Roman communicates with controllers using the Near Space Network, a system of ground stations and relay satellites that handles tracking, telemetry, and commands.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 31, 2026

It is debating whether interest rates are too low with inflation above target, and Warsh is remaking how it communicates with markets.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026

He has become more taciturn: he too now communicates by postcard.

From "Cat's Eye" by Margaret Atwood

The robots arrived accompanied by Ted Pinkerton, a founding engineer at Tau, who communicated with Bolo and Sergey’s human operators through a Bluetooth earpiece.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2026

They scheduled and attended appointments, helped coordinate transportation and childcare, communicated with doctors and nurses, and helped patients make sense of complicated medical information.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 6, 2026

We also shaped the other side of that relationship, selecting dogs that communicated in ways humans could readily understand.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2026

Investigators say the victims were targeted by a group of men from Germany, New Zealand and the United States who communicated on the popular messaging platform Discord.

From Barron's ● Oct. 5, 2026

At home he hardly communicated with anyone but went immediately to his tiny room, where he listened to the gospel music of James Cleveland.

From "Friday Night Lights: A Town, A Team, And A Dream" by H.G. Bissinger

Is there any one thing that comes to mind as the most important thing you’ve learned about communicating and connecting with people?

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 19, 2026

Alongside this complexity, Warsh also appears to be looking to hone the Fed’s strategy for communicating with the public.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2026

These individuals spent four to five hours or more on their phones each day, largely consuming online content rather than communicating directly with other people.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 12, 2026

In another instance, more than 1,200 OpenAI agents went rogue and started unexpectedly communicating, leading to a large group banding together to hack into AI platform Hugging Face.

From BBC ● Oct. 10, 2026

“You could never imagine the designs already in motion. I have been locked away for years, yes, but not without means of communicating with the outside world.”

From "Fablehaven" by Brandon Mull

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