designate
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to mark or point out; indicate; show; specify.
-
to denote; indicate; signify.
-
to name; entitle; style.
-
to nominate or select for a duty, office, purpose, etc.; appoint; assign.
adjective
verb
-
to indicate or specify
-
to give a name to; style; entitle
-
to select or name for an office or duty; appoint
adjective
Other Word Forms
- dedesignate verb (used with object)
- designative adjective
- designator noun
- designatory adjective
- nondesignate adjective
- nondesignative adjective
- redesignate verb (used with object)
- undesignated adjective
- undesignative adjective
- well-designated adjective
Etymology
Origin of designate
1640–50; < Latin dēsignātus, past participle of dēsignāre. See design, -ate 1
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.
Authorizing credits from voluntary projects “is a difficult question for us at this time,” said Astere Nindamutsa, designated national authority for Burundi.
It has been designated a terrorist organization by the U.S., which says it uses money it raises to purchase foreign military equipment and pay for its proxy military forces.
The market seems to designate a new loser of AI every day.
From Barron's
Yosemite has designated “First Amendment areas” that allocate space for demonstrations and other activities that could potentially damage park resources.
Blocks of flats in Yelets have designated shelters, too, in basements.
From BBC
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.
