delete

[ dih-leet ]

/ dɪˈlit /

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See synonyms for: delete / deleted / deleting on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object), de·let·ed, de·let·ing.

to strike out or remove (something written or printed); cancel; erase; expunge.

OTHER WORDS FOR delete

eradicate.

See synonyms for delete on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

QUIZ YOURSELF ON "IS" VS. "ARE"

"Is" it time for a new quiz? "Are" you ready? Then prove your excellent skills on using "is" vs. "are."

Question 1 of 7

IS and ARE are both forms of which verb?

have

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Origin of delete

1485–95; <Latin dēlētus (past participle of dēlēre to destroy), equivalent to dēl- destroy + -ē- thematic vowel + -tus past participle suffix

synonym study for delete

See cancel.

OTHER WORDS FROM delete

de·let·a·ble, adjectivere·de·lete, verb (used with object), re·de·let·ed, re·de·let·ing.un·de·let·ed, adjective

Words nearby delete

delegate, delegation, delegatory, delegitimize, de Lesseps, delete, deleterious, deletion, deleverage, deleveraging, delft

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

MORE ABOUT DELETE

What is basic definition of delete?

Delete means to remove or destroy something, specifically something that is written, printed, or stored on a computer.

Before the Internet, delete often referred to removing something from drafts of books, letters, newspapers, and other materials. Today, delete often refers to either hitting a key on a keyboard that erases text or telling a computer to get rid of a file, as by placing a document in the trash can. A person may also want to delete (deactivate) a social media account.

Real-life examples: When you’re writing an essay, you might delete some paragraphs and add others. To better use data storage space, you might delete all of your junk email or delete a bunch of photos from your smartphone.
Used in a sentence: The reporter deleted the final two paragraphs of the story in order to make it shorter.

Where does delete come from?

The first records of delete come from around 1485. It comes from the Latin dēlēre, meaning “to destroy.”

Did you know ... ?

What are some other forms related to delete?

deletion (noun)
deletable (adjective)
redelete (verb)
undeleted (adjective)

What are some synonyms for delete?

What are some words that share a root or word element with delete?

deletion

What are some words that often get used in discussing delete?

How is delete used in real life?

Delete is a common word that most often refers to destroying or erasing something on a computer.

Time to film exactly what I filmed yesterday and NOT DELETE THE FILES

— Chloe Donald 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 (@ChloeDonald_) May 6, 2015

When downloading a PDF, if it ends with .exe, delete it. It's probably a virus.

— Fact (@Fact) December 2, 2020

Being an adult is just constantly deleting emails from your inbox

— Meemze (@MimiLei_) December 2, 2020

Try using delete!

True or False?

If you delete a text message, you are erasing it from your device.

How to use delete in a sentence

The Lincoln Project did not immediately respond to a message from The Washington Post seeking comment about the deleted tweets as of early Friday.
Lincoln Project tweeted a co-founder’s private messages after leaders promised to probe sexual harassment claims|Andrea Salcedo|February 12, 2021|Washington Post
So it has also ordered the police to take steps to ensure Clearview deletes the data.
Sweden’s data watchdog slaps police for unlawful use of Clearview AI|Natasha Lomas|February 12, 2021|TechCrunch
They make mistakes, like accidentally inserting one nucleotide for another, deleting one, or doubling another.
How the Covid-19 variants are spreading|Katherine Ellen Foley|February 11, 2021|Quartz
The post has since been deleted, but not before fans captured the moment and shared it widely.
Gina Carano is off ‘The Mandalorian’ over ‘abhorrent and unacceptable’ social media posts, Lucasfilm says|Timothy Bella|February 11, 2021|Washington Post

Often material will remain in the company’s servers even if it has been deleted off their sites.
Dominion Voting tells Facebook, Parler and other social media sites to preserve posts for lawsuits|Rachel Lerman|February 5, 2021|Washington Post
Ultimately, all it took was the mere mention of a lawyer for the perpetrator to delete the accounts and disappear completely.
A Female Writer’s New Milestone: Her First Death Threat|Annie Gaus|December 1, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The Navy captain responded to the text from Bissonnette with the words, “Delete me.”
‘They Don’t Call It SEAL Team 6-Year-Old for Nothing’: Commandos Clash Over Tell-All Book|Kimberly Dozier|November 3, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Or perhaps just delete your social media accounts altogether.
The GOP's Many Facebook Fiascos|Tim Mak|August 7, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Or, I should say, why did Facebook delete my account three times?
Porn Stars Want to Know: Why Did Facebook Delete Me?|Aurora Snow|August 2, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Twitter required an old-fashioned fax of a government-issued ID before it would delete the imitator account.
How I (Digitally) Killed My Twitter Impostor|JoBeth McDaniel|July 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In l. 87 I delete alas after him, which makes the line a whole foot too long, and is not required.
Chaucer's Works, Volume 1 (of 7) -- Romaunt of the Rose; Minor Poems|Geoffrey Chaucer
It was curtailed, but delete it as one would, it was still too long.
The English Stage|Augustin Filon
Would you rather I just delete what I said and just pretend that nothing is going on?
Warren Commission (5 of 26): Hearings Vol. V (of 15)|The President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy
Would it be possible to delete it from the Commission's report?
Warren Commission (5 of 26): Hearings Vol. V (of 15)|The President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy
The very war-correspondents were instructed to delete the horror and to write nothing that would disturb your calm.
The Kingdom Round the Corner|Coningsby Dawson

British Dictionary definitions for delete

delete

/ (dɪˈliːt) /

verb

(tr) to remove (something printed or written); erase; cancel; strike out

Word Origin for delete

C17: from Latin dēlēre to destroy, obliterate

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

delete

OTHER WORDS FOR delete

Origin of delete

synonym study for delete

OTHER WORDS FROM delete

Words nearby delete

MORE ABOUT DELETE

What is basic definition of delete?

Where does delete come from?

Did you know ... ?

How is delete used in real life?

Try using delete!

Words related to delete

How to use delete in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for delete

Word Origin for delete