emigrate

[em-i-greyt]

verb (used without object)

emigrated, emigrating 

1. to leave one country or region to settle in another; migrate.

   to emigrate from Ireland to Australia.

emigrate

/ ˈɛmɪˌɡreɪt /

verb

1. (intr) to leave one place or country, esp one's native country, in order to settle in another Compare immigrate

Other Word Forms

• emigratory adjective
• emigrative adjective
• reemigrate verb (used without object)
• unemigrating adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of emigrate¹

First recorded in 1770–80; from Latin ēmīgrātus “moved away” (past participle of ēmīgrāre ), equivalent to ē- “from, away from, out of” ( e- ¹ ) + mīgrātus ( mīgr- “remove” + ātus verb suffix ( -ate ¹ )

Word History and Origins

Origin of emigrate¹

C18: from Latin ēmīgrāre, from mīgrāre to depart, _migrate

Synonym Study

See migrate.

Example Sentences

With more than 40 percent of Cameroonians living below the poverty line, over half the central African country's young people dream of emigrating -- and businesses helping them leave are thriving.

Read more on Barron's

He works for the National Day Laborer Organizing Network and said those he supervises have emigrated from Mexico, Central America and South America.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Tseggai’s parents emigrated from Eritrea, and she says that many Eritreans have come to see the play.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

The son of Pakistani parents who emigrated to the UK, he has always spoken with pride about his heritage and the bond it gave him with fans in South Asia.

Read more on BBC

The Grimmer family had only just emigrated from the UK.

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• depart 
• migrate 
• quit 

When To Use

What does emigrate mean?

Emigrate means to permanently leave home in one country or region to settle in another.The act or occurrence of emigrating is called emigration. A person who is emigrating or has emigrated can be called an emigrant.What’s the difference between emigrate, immigrate, and migrate?To migrate is to move from one place to another (and perhaps back and forth). To emigrate is to move out, and to immigrate is to move in. For this reason, the word emigrate is commonly followed by from and the home country, whereas immigrate is commonly followed by to and the destination country.Of course, emigrate and immigrate are two ways to describe the same process—people who are emigrating are also immigrating (if they leave, they have to go somewhere).But there are good reasons to use each word in different situations. For example, one country may be a common destination for people to immigrate to, while another may be a place that people are frequently emigrating from.The words migrate and immigrate are more likely to be used to describe such relocation in a general way (that is, a way that takes both the starting point and the destination into account), whereas emigrate is almost always about the starting point.Example: The lack of employment has caused a significant number of people to emigrate, with many highly skilled workers leaving the country.