designate
Americanverb (used with object)
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designates,
present (3rd person singular)
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designated,
past participle, past
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designating
present participle
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to mark or point out; indicate; show; specify.
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to denote; indicate; signify.
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to name; entitle; style.
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to nominate or select for a duty, office, purpose, etc.; appoint; assign.
adjective
verb
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to indicate or specify
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to give a name to; style; entitle
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to select or name for an office or duty; appoint
adjective
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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designatornoun
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dedesignateverb (used with object)
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redesignateverb (used with object)
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designativeadjective
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designatoryadjective
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nondesignateadjective
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nondesignativeadjective
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undesignatedadjective
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undesignativeadjective
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well-designatedadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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designatesimple
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designatessimple
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have designatedperfect
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has designatedperfect
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am designatingprogressive
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are designatingprogressive
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is designatingprogressive
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have been designatingperfect progressive
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has been designatingperfect progressive
Past
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designatedsimple
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had designatedperfect
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was designatingprogressive
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were designatingprogressive
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had been designatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of designate
1640–50; < Latin dēsignātus, past participle of dēsignāre. See design, -ate 1
Explanation
To designate is to give something a specific status. If you designate your house an opera-free zone, it means that you've officially declared that no opera is allowed to be played there. To give a person or thing an official status is to designate it as something, like when you designate a meeting place if members of your group get lost at the amusement park. Sometimes, it can carry responsibility or an assignment, like when your teammates designate you as the captain. It can also show a category, like when you designate certain books to the humor section of the bookstore where you work.
Vocabulary lists containing designate
Baseball: A Lexicon
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Number the Stars
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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:
The court system would have to step in and officially designate the guardian, checking criminal backgrounds first.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 26, 2026
As the former head of the State Department’s office that recommended to the secretary of state which groups to designate, I’ve been involved in the designations of hundreds of individuals and organizations.
From Salon ● Jul. 23, 2026
“After thoughtful discussions, the City of West Hollywood, the WeHo Pride production team, and Kathy Hilton have determined that the 2026 WeHo Pride Parade will not designate a Grand Marshal Icon honoree,” read the statement.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 4, 2026
The Lyons lived in Fontana-on-Geneva Lake, Wis. Davies’ powers included a general authority over retirement plans and the specific authority to designate beneficiaries.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 15, 2026
He couldn’t see it, of course, though later he said he had felt it come forward, had perceived it with the kind of knowledge that had made the people designate Seer as his true name.
From "Messenger" by Lois Lowry
Known as the Record of Emergency Data, this form designates that beneficiaries get $100,000 tax-free cash and any unreceived payments after a servicemember dies.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 28, 2026
As a terrorism scholar who spent a decade running the State Department office that designates terrorist organizations, I understand their confusion.
From Salon ● Jul. 23, 2026
The case stems from a broader legal dispute over the renaming of the cultural institution, which US law designates as a memorial to President John F Kennedy.
From BBC ● Jun. 13, 2026
Some well-known companies were added to the annually updated list, which designates them as a U.S. national-security risk.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 9, 2026
Denmark gives its citizens the choice of three official genders: male, female, and X.The White House designates a gender-neutral bathroom for visitors and staff.
From "The 57 Bus" by Dashka Slater
Tommy Edman was penciled into the leadoff spot and will play center field, while Alex Call will be the designated hitter and bat eighth.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 3, 2026
The negotiations also cover a framework agreed in mid-June, under which Hezbollah is expected to disarm, the Lebanese army to deploy in the south and Israeli forces to withdraw gradually, beginning with designated "pilot zones".
From BBC ● Sep. 3, 2026
People were classified as having experienced persistent hardship if their questionnaire scores crossed a designated threshold at least twice between the ages of 36 and 53.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 2, 2026
“These shares are the only assets in her estate without designated beneficiaries.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026
The place has a designated walking trail in the back.
From "The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl" by Stacy McAnulty
On his first day back in office, US President Donald Trump announced he would increase pressure on Mexico and the cartels, including designating the criminal enterprises terrorist groups.
From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026
Clients often hear financial planners talk in terms of designating different buckets of money to organize a portfolio.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 13, 2026
“You don’t want localities or states getting into the business of designating their enemies or their political adversaries or the people they disagree with as terrorists. That’s just not a good thing,” Sinnar said.
From Salon ● Apr. 17, 2026
Carter administration lawyers said the president had the authority to designate an acting chair from among any of the Fed’s seven governors, and Carter issued an order designating Burns as the acting chair.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 16, 2026
He never declared which of these times we were to abide by, however—which was curious, considering how much he’d talked about the importance of designating a hard deadline and sticking to it no matter what.
From "Into Thin Air" by Jon Krakauer
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.
