ligate

[ lahy-geyt ]

/ ˈlaɪ geɪt /

Save This Word!

verb (used with object), li·gat·ed, li·gat·ing.

to bind with or as if with a ligature; tie up (a bleeding artery or the like).

QUIZ

CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?

There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?

Question 1 of 7

Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of ligate

1590–1600; <Latin ligātus (past participle of ligāre to tie, bind); see -ate¹

Words nearby ligate

ligamentous, ligamentum, ligan, ligand, ligase, ligate, ligation, ligature, ligeance, liger, Ligeti

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use ligate in a sentence

If the bleeding cannot otherwise be arrested it may be necessary to ligate the external carotid artery.
Manual of Surgery Volume Second: Extremities--Head--Neck. Sixth Edition.|Alexander Miles
If profuse hæmorrhage occurs it may be necessary to ligate the main artery lower in the neck.
Manual of Surgery Volume Second: Extremities--Head--Neck. Sixth Edition.|Alexander Miles
Medical authorities tell him to do coeliotomy at once, ligate the uterine and ovarian arteries, and remove the foetus.
Essays In Pastoral Medicine|Austin Malley
Among the Islanders they sometimes ligate the prepuce so that it drops off.
History of Circumcision from the Earliest Times to the Present|Peter Charles Remondino

I know there are professors in this country who "ligate" arteries.
Medical Essays|Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.

British Dictionary definitions for ligate

ligate

/ (ˈlaɪɡeɪt) /

verb

(tr) to tie up or constrict (something) with a ligature

Derived forms of ligate

ligation, nounligative (ˈlɪɡətɪv), adjective

Word Origin for ligate

C16: from Latin ligātus, from ligāre to bind

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