implicate
Americanverb (used with object)
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to show to be also involved, usually in an incriminating manner.
to be implicated in a crime.
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to imply as a necessary circumstance, or as something to be inferred or understood.
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to connect or relate to intimately; affect as a consequence.
The malfunctioning of one part of the nervous system implicates another part.
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Archaic. to fold or twist together; intertwine; interlace.
verb
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to show to be involved, esp in a crime
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to involve as a necessary inference; imply
his protest implicated censure by the authorities
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to affect intimately
this news implicates my decision
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rare to intertwine or entangle
Related Words
See involve.
Other Word Forms
- implicative adjective
- implicatively adverb
Etymology
Origin of implicate
First recorded in 1530–40; from Latin implicātus, past participle of implicāre “to interweave,” equivalent to im- im- 1 + plicā(re) “to fold” + -ātus -ate 1; ply 2
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.
Colorado argued that its statute does not meaningfully implicate the First Amendment because it regulates conduct and only incidentally burdens speech.
From Slate • Mar. 31, 2026
“To figure out where his power and money came from—they felt trying to answer that didn’t implicate them in his crimes.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 20, 2026
The 49-year-old has vowed to implicate officials in the current government in the case.
From Barron's • Mar. 20, 2026
The files do not implicate Clinton in any wrongdoing; he has not been accused of misconduct by Epstein's victims who have come forward so far, and there is no proof he knew of his crimes.
From BBC • Feb. 26, 2026
The last thing I needed was to somehow implicate Denna in all this.
From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss
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.
