delate

[ dih-leyt ]

/ dɪˈleɪt /

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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.

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of delate

1505–15; <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, nounde·la·tor, de·lat·er, noundel·a·to·ri·an

[del-uh-tawr-ee-uhn, -tohr-], /ˌdɛl əˈtɔr i ən, -ˈtoʊr-/, adjective

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

How to use delate in a sentence

If two or three had proven any point that by their law was holden heresy, the delated person was a heretic.
The History of the Reformation of Religion in Scotland|John Knox

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

Derived forms of delate

delation, noundelator, noun

Word Origin for delate

C16: from Latin dēlātus, from dēferre to bring down, report, indict, from de- + ferre to bear

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