delegate
Americannoun
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delegates
plural
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a person designated to act for or represent another or others; deputy; representative, as in a political convention.
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(formerly) the representative of a Territory in the U.S. House of Representatives.
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a member of the lower house of the state legislature of Maryland, Virginia, or West Virginia.
noun
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a person chosen or elected to act for or represent another or others, esp at a conference or meeting
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government a representative of a territory in the US House of Representatives
verb
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to give or commit (duties, powers, etc) to another as agent or representative; depute
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(tr) to send, authorize, or elect (a person) as agent or representative
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(tr) to assign (a person owing a debt to oneself) to one's creditor in substitution for oneself
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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delegateenoun
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delegatornoun
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nondelegatenoun
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predelegatenoun
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subdelegatenoun
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redelegateverb (used with object)
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subdelegateverb (used with object)
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delegableadjective
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undelegatedadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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delegatesimple
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delegatessimple
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have delegatedperfect
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has delegatedperfect
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am delegatingprogressive
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are delegatingprogressive
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is delegatingprogressive
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have been delegatingperfect progressive
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has been delegatingperfect progressive
Past
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delegatedsimple
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had delegatedperfect
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was delegatingprogressive
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were delegatingprogressive
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had been delegatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of delegate
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English (past participle) delegat, from Medieval Latin dēlēgātus, noun use of past participle of dēlēgāre “to assign,” equivalent to dē- de- + lēgātus “deputed”; see legate
Explanation
Delegate lends an official air to passing off your work. If you don't like cleaning the bathroom, you can try to delegate that task to your little brother. A delegate is also an elected official, or the person who is doing the task you delegated them to do. In presidential primaries in the United States, you do not vote for a candidate, you vote for a delegate whose job it is to vote for that candidate at a convention. Be careful with how you pronounce the end of the word. The elected official is pronounced DE-lə-git whereas delegate as a verb should be DE-lə-gāt.
Vocabulary lists containing delegate
The Bill of Rights
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List 4
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U.S. Government Lingo
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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:
But while a particular outcome might not have been foreseeable, the decision to delegate was deliberate and made by identifiable people based on evidence they either had or should have sought.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026
How do you delegate the tasks you formerly did, lead former peers and juggle increased responsibilities?
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 1, 2026
“I’ve learned to delegate and let other people take over.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 20, 2026
"The latest figure that we have is 72," the government's delegate to Ceuta, Miguel Angel Perez Triano, told reporters, when asked about the number of fatalities.
From Barron's ● Aug. 2, 2026
He arrived back in Philadelphia a conquering hero and in plenty of time to be selected as a delegate to the Constitutional Convention.
From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis
As numerous delegates exited the room, Netanyahu called out: “If there are any other moral cowards who have not yet left the hall, please do so now.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 25, 2026
Jackson, a former state lawmaker, was chosen by Maine Democratic Party delegates to run in place of Platner, who dropped out in July after sexual misconduct allegations against him.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 21, 2026
The attachment lists three Taiwanese delegates who planned to attend the pope’s funeral and their flight details.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2026
More than a month of talks ended on August 22 with the delegates overwhelmingly backing plans to combine the office of prime minister and the largely ceremonial presidency into a new "executive presidency".
From Barron's ● Aug. 31, 2026
They drafted a message to the white delegates, calling it a “moral appeal to the hearts and consciences of the people of our State.”
From "The Best of Enemies" by Osha Gray Davidson
That hasn’t kept him from abusing other trade powers delegated by Congress.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 30, 2026
The position is usually delegated to a junior minister, the paper explains.
From BBC ● Jul. 26, 2026
Lunetta pointed out that hospitals "have repetitive tasks" which "could be delegated to a good robot".
From Barron's ● Jun. 19, 2026
In 2022, the 5th Circuit ruled that this arrangement delegated “government power to a private entity without sufficient agency supervision” and struck it down.
From Slate ● Jun. 12, 2026
I delegated what I could to Melissa and other members of my transition team.
From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama
Similarly to that crawl, L.A.’s will feature a passport system, which involves delegating stamps for every purchase of $10 or more at each stop.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026
Call it CEO parenting: treating the modern family as a small enterprise and delegating low-joy tasks.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 18, 2026
"Alter-Ego" may seem capable but "no-one has considered directly delegating the administration of pills" to it, neurologist Rachele Piras said.
From Barron's ● Jun. 19, 2026
But he has become good at delegating, too, with all of the backroom team delivering sessions so the squad don't get tired of hearing one voice.
From BBC ● May 19, 2026
He was delegating the red rubber bands to Laney when his mom called to him from the kitchen.
From "The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street" by Karina Yan Glaser
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.
