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dominate

[dom-uh-neyt]
See more synonyms for dominate on Thesaurus.com
verb (used with object), dom·i·nat·ed, dom·i·nat·ing.
  1. to rule over; govern; control.
  2. to tower above; overlook; overshadow: A tall pine dominated the landscape.
  3. to predominate, permeate, or characterize.
  4. Mathematics. (of a series, vector, etc.) to have terms or components greater in absolute value than the corresponding terms or components of a given series, vector, etc.
  5. Linguistics. (of a node in a tree diagram) to be connected with (a subordinate node) either directly by a single downward branch or indirectly by a sequence of downward branches.
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verb (used without object), dom·i·nat·ed, dom·i·nat·ing.
  1. to rule; exercise control; predominate.
  2. to occupy a commanding or elevated position.
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Origin of dominate

1605–15; < Latin dominātus (past participle of dominārī to master, control), equivalent to domin- (stem of dominus) master + -ātus -ate1
Related formsdom·i·nat·ing·ly, adverbdom·i·na·tor, nounnon·dom·i·nat·ing, adjectiveo·ver·dom·i·nate, verb (used with object), o·ver·dom·i·nat·ed, o·ver·dom·i·nat·ing.re·dom·i·nate, verb, re·dom·i·nat·ed, re·dom·i·nat·ing.un·dom·i·nat·ed, adjectivewell-dom·i·nat·ed, adjective
Can be confuseddominant dominate domineer (see synonym study at dominant)
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

disciplinarian, administrator, supervisor, executive, employer, director, chief, owner, chieftain, leader, superintendent, commander, manager, officer, tyrant, overseer, boss, foreperson, wheel, head

Examples from the Web for dominator

Historical Examples

  • My creature, viz., a particular expression of will, would have become my dominator.

    Anarchism

    Paul Eltzbacher

  • Until he was beaten he was dominator, arbiter, and despot, if he chose to be.

    The Grizzly King

    James Oliver Curwood

  • He was tender and he was happy, but he was, after all, the dominator.

    The Precipice

    Elia Wilkinson Peattie

  • Had he not been the very monk he was, he would not have been the dominator of men and situations that he proved himself to be.

  • Verse is no dominator over the poet, except inasmuch as the bond is reciprocal, and the poet dominates over the verse.

British Dictionary definitions for dominator

dominate

verb
  1. to control, rule, or govern (someone or something)
  2. to tower above (surroundings, etc); overlook
  3. (tr; usually passive) to predominate in (something or someone)
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Derived Formsdominating, adjectivedominatingly, adverbdominative, adjectivedominator, noun

Word Origin

C17: from Latin dominārī to be lord over, from dominus lord
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

Word Origin and History for dominator

dominate

v.

1610s, from Latin dominatus, past participle of dominari "to rule, dominate, to govern," from dominus (see domain). Related: Dominated; dominating. Or perhaps a back-formation from domination.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper