Top Definitions
Quiz
Related Content
Examples
British
Idioms And Phrases

date

¹

[ deyt ]

/ deɪt /

Save This Word!

See synonyms for: date / dated / dating on Thesaurus.com

noun

a particular month, day, and year at which some event happened or will happen: July 4, 1776 was the date of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

the day of the month: Is today's date the 7th or the 8th?

an inscription on a writing, coin, etc., that shows the time, or time and place, of writing, casting, delivery, etc.: a letter bearing the date January 16.

the time or period to which any event or thing belongs; period in general: Funeral arrangements will be announced at a later date.

the time during which anything lasts; duration: The pity is that childhood has so short a date.

an appointment for a particular time: They have a date with their accountant at ten o'clock.

a social appointment or engagement arranged beforehand with another person, especially when a romantic relationship exists or may develop: to go out on a Saturday night date.

a person with whom one has such a social appointment or engagement: Can I bring a date to the party?

an engagement for an entertainer to perform.

dates, the birth and death dates, usually in years, of a person: Dante's dates are 1265 to 1321.

verb (used without object), dat·ed, dat·ing.

to have or bear a date: The letter dates from 1873.

to belong to a particular period; have its origin: That dress dates from the 19th century. The architecture dates as far back as 1830.

to reckon from some point in time: The custom dates from the days when women wore longer skirts.

to go out socially on dates: She dated a lot during high school.

verb (used with object), dat·ed, dat·ing.

to mark or furnish with a date: Please date the check as of today.

to ascertain or fix the period or point in time of; assign a period or point in time to: The archaeologist dated the ruins as belonging to the early Minoan period.

to show the age of; show to be old-fashioned.

to make a date with; go out on dates with: He's been dating his best friend's sister.

VIDEO FOR DATE

These Words Describe The Many Feelings We've All Had About A First Date

No matter if we're feeling apprehensive or eager ... first dates are intimidating. Why though?

MORE VIDEOS FROM DICTIONARY.COM

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Idioms about date

to date, up to the present time; until now: This is his best book to date.

up to date. See entry at up-to-date.

Origin of date

¹

First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English noun from Middle French, from Late Latin data, noun use of data (feminine of datus, past participle of dare “to give”), from the phrase data (Romae) “written, given (at Rome)”; Middle English verb daten “to sign or date a document,” derivative of the noun

OTHER WORDS FROM date

dat·a·ble, date·a·ble, adjectivedat·a·ble·ness, date·a·ble·ness, noundat·er, nounun·dat·a·ble, adjective

un·date·a·ble, adjective

Words nearby date

data set, data structure, dataveillance, data warehouse, datcha, date, datebook, dated, Datel, dateless, dateline

Other definitions for date (2 of 2)

date²

[ deyt ]

/ deɪt /

noun

the oblong, fleshy fruit of the date palm, a staple food in northern Africa, Arabia, etc., and an important export.

Origin of date

²

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English, from Anglo-French, Old French dade, date, from Medieval Latin datil(l)us, from Latin dactylus, from Greek dáktylos, from a Semitic language (and unrelated to Greek dáktylos “finger; dactyl)

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use date in a sentence

If we’re talking about something or we’re watching a show … I’ll use conversations that we’re having as fodder for date conversations.
What’s sexy in a pandemic? Caution.|Lisa Bonos|February 12, 2021|Washington Post
You can add it to your listing or your clients’ profiles by adding an opening date under the “Info” option in the admin menu.
Is Google moving toward being search marketing’s point of singularity: Thursday’s daily brief|Carolyn Lyden|February 11, 2021|Search Engine Land
They had met one year earlier, on Valentine’s Day 2019, on a date where everything seemed to go right.
Date Lab: One of our setups is still going strong two years later. We caught up with Willie and Renee for an update.|Marin Cogan|February 11, 2021|Washington Post
So if your business has been around for some time, adding the open date can help encourage a searcher to click on your listing and potentially call or visit your location, hopefully ultimately leading to a sale.
Google officially displays years in business in local pack|Barry Schwartz|February 10, 2021|Search Engine Land

Four of those have already been made up, and another two have rescheduled dates set.
Big Ten moves men’s basketball tournament to Indianapolis|Emily Giambalvo|February 9, 2021|Washington Post
In my four years of college, I know exactly one woman who has asked a man out on a date.
Random Hook-Ups or Dry Spells: Why Millennials Flunk College Dating|Ellie Schaack|January 1, 2015|DAILY BEAST
As I sign the forms to be admitted to have surgery the next day, I ask my husband the date.
You’re Never ‘Cured’ of an Eating Disorder|Carrie Arnold|December 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The trickiest items having been placed in the “freezer” to be addressed at a later date.
Did The U.S.-Cuba Deal Help Drive A Rebel Ceasefire in Colombia?|Richard McColl|December 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Just a month from that date, he now no longer believes that to be realistic, and will no longer estimate a timeline for the trial.
Prosecutors Have No Idea When 9/11 Mastermind’s Trial Will Start|Tim Mak|December 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
When on August 7, 2013 Future finally did share a tentative date, he also made a significant change.
Future Makes Us Rethink Everything We Thought We Knew About Rap Artists|Luke Hopping|December 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Bessires was included because he would never win it at any later date, but his doglike devotion made him a priceless subordinate.
Napoleon's Marshals|R. P. Dunn-Pattison
A native of Haarlem on Zandam, the date of her birth being unknown.
Women in the fine arts, from the Seventh Century B.C. to the Twentieth Century A.D.|Clara Erskine Clement
At the latter date all artists were obliged to vacate the Sorbonne ateliers to make room for some new department of instruction.
Women in the fine arts, from the Seventh Century B.C. to the Twentieth Century A.D.|Clara Erskine Clement
The text of the amendments designed to carry out these recommendations will be submitted by the Board at an early date.
Readings in Money and Banking|Chester Arthur Phillips
Hitherto, I have not given the subject much consideration, but I turn over a new leaf from the date of this adventure.
Glances at Europe|Horace Greeley

British Dictionary definitions for date (1 of 2)

date¹

/ (deɪt) /

noun

a specified day of the monthtoday's date is October 27

the particular day or year of an eventthe date of the Norman Conquest was 1066

(plural) the years of a person's birth and death or of the beginning and end of an event or period

an inscription on a coin, letter, etc, stating when it was made or written

an appointment for a particular time, esp with a person to whom one is sexually or romantically attachedshe has a dinner date
the person with whom the appointment is made

the present moment; now (esp in the phrases to date, up to date)

verb

(tr) to mark (a letter, coin, etc) with the day, month, or year

(tr) to assign a date of occurrence or creation to

(intr; foll by from or back to) to have originated (at a specified time)his decline dates from last summer

(tr) to reveal the age ofthat dress dates her

to make or become old-fashionedsome good films hardly date at all

informal, mainly US and Canadian

to be a boyfriend or girlfriend of (someone of the opposite sex)
to accompany (a member of the opposite sex) on a date

Derived forms of date

datable or dateable, adjectivedateless, adjective

Word Origin for date

C14: from Old French, from Latin dare to give, as in the phrase epistula data Romae letter handed over at Rome

undefined date

See year

British Dictionary definitions for date (2 of 2)

date²

/ (deɪt) /

noun

the fruit of the date palm, having sweet edible flesh and a single large woody seed

short for date palm

Word Origin for date

C13: from Old French, from Latin, from Greek daktulos finger

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

Other Idioms and Phrases with date

date

In addition to the idiom beginning with date

date rape

also see

bring up to date
double date
make a date
out of date
to date
up to date

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.