delate
[ dih-leyt ]
verb (used with object),de·lat·ed, de·lat·ing.
Chiefly Scot. to inform against; denounce or accuse.
Archaic. to relate; report: to delate an offense.
Origin of delate
11505–15; <Latin dēlātus (suppletive past participle of dēferre to bring down, report, accuse), equivalent to dē-de- + lā- carry (past participle stem of ferre) + -tus past participle suffix
Other words from delate
- de·la·tion, noun
- de·la·tor, de·lat·er, noun
- del·a·to·ri·an [del-uh-tawr-ee-uhn, -tohr-], /ˌdɛl əˈtɔr i ən, -ˈtoʊr-/, adjective
Words Nearby delate
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use delate in a sentence
Elders were ordered by the minister to search the town and “to delate the absentees.”
Bygone Church Life in Scotland | VariousPerhaps this party division is necessary to induce each to watch and delate to the people the proceedings of the other.
British Dictionary definitions for delate
delate
/ (dɪˈleɪt) /
verb(tr)
(formerly) to bring a charge against; denounce; impeach
rare to report (an offence, etc)
obsolete to make known or public
Origin of delate
1C16: from Latin dēlātus, from dēferre to bring down, report, indict, from de- + ferre to bear
Derived forms of delate
- delation, noun
- delator, noun
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
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