operate
Americanverb (used without object)
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operates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
operated,
past participle, past
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operating
present participle
-
to work, perform, or function, as a machine does.
This engine does not operate properly.
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to work or use a machine, apparatus, or the like.
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to act effectively; produce an effect; exert force or influence (often followed by on orupon ).
Their propaganda is beginning to operate on the minds of the people.
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to perform some process of work or treatment.
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Surgery. to perform a surgical procedure.
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(of a drug) to produce the effect intended.
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Military.
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to carry on operations in war.
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to give orders and accomplish military acts, as distinguished from doing staff work.
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-
to carry on transactions in securities, or some commodity, especially speculatively or on a large scale.
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Informal. to use devious means for one's own gain; insinuate oneself; finagle.
a man who knows how to operate with the ladies.
verb (used with object)
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operates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
operated,
past participle, past
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operating
present participle
-
to manage or use (a machine, device, etc.).
Do you know how to operate a forklift?
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to put or keep (a factory, industrial system, ranch, etc.) working or in operation.
to operate a coal mine.
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to bring about, effect, or produce, as by action or the exertion of force or influence.
verb
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to function or cause to function
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(tr) to control the functioning of
operate a machine
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to manage, direct, run, or pursue (a business, system, etc)
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(intr) to perform a surgical operation (upon a person or animal)
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(intr) to produce a desired or intended effect
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to treat or process in a particular or specific way
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(intr) to conduct military or naval operations
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(intr) to deal in securities on a stock exchange
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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reoperateverb (used with object)
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preoperateverb (used without object)
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operatableadjective
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unoperatableadjective
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unoperatedadjective
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well-operatedadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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operatesimple
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operatessimple
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have operatedperfect
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has operatedperfect
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am operatingprogressive
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are operatingprogressive
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is operatingprogressive
-
have been operatingperfect progressive
-
has been operatingperfect progressive
Past
-
operatedsimple
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had operatedperfect
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was operatingprogressive
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were operatingprogressive
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had been operatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of operate
First recorded in 1600–10; from Late Latin operātus, past participle of operārī, -āre “to work, be efficacious, effect, produce,” Latin: “to busy oneself,” verbal derivative of opera effort, work, akin to opus “work”; see -ate 1
Explanation
You'll want to find a skilled surgeon to operate on your hand. Once your hand is working again, you'll be able to operate your buzz saw with ease. Operate comes from a Latin root related to opus, "work," and it's a verb that can be used for all kinds of work. Your computer can operate smoothly, the lottery can operate successfully, your school can operate a day care center in some vacant classrooms, and you can operate your vehicle in a safe manner. If you're an unshakable optimist, your friends may say you "operate in a dream world."
Vocabulary lists containing operate
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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.
See Examples For:
"Clearly we will need to improve in the way we build and operate our hydropower plants," he adds.
From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2026
Chief Executive Wen Han is restructuring Windrose to operate with fewer workers and pivot from designing truck bodies to developing software.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 4, 2026
Bonds operate like seesaws: When the interest rate, or yield, falls, the price rises.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 4, 2026
"Understanding those decisions is a first step toward understanding normal brain development, disease vulnerability and, potentially, how similar stem-cell programs operate in brain cancer."
From Science Daily ● Sep. 4, 2026
Those of us in the civil rights community are not immune to the racial stereotypes that pervade media imagery and political rhetoric; nor do we operate outside of the political context.
From "The New Jim Crow" by Michelle Alexander
Tesla operates robotaxi services in Austin, Houston and Dallas, as well as in three Florida cities.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 4, 2026
He was still chairperson of Mercury General, which is publicly traded and operates in 11 states.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 4, 2026
The university operates the Planetary Virtual Observatory Laboratory, a website that collects ground-based images of solar system planets submitted by observers around the world.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 3, 2026
Semenyo operates mainly from the right flank but is seen as an option at number nine, having played in the position during some cup games last season.
From BBC ● Sep. 2, 2026
“I would like her to be involved in a renewal of our essential agreements. That our family operates in the same way regardless of whether we are a merged entity or not.”
From "Saints and Misfits" by S.K. Ali
“I’m a legitimate business and highly regulated,” said Ashton, whose store has operated in the city for 13 years.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 4, 2026
It was the first all-female founded and operated periodical, designed to be an alternative to other women's magazines that typically focused on housekeeping and fashion.
From BBC ● Sep. 3, 2026
According to sheriff’s officials, the owner of the business operated out of the warehouse is a suspect and the investigation is ongoing.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026
A commercial flight operated by Russia’s largest airline, Aeroflot, lands each morning at the airport in Malé, where teams of local middlemen working with Russia-linked logistics companies help get the U.S.,
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026
A functional circuit of genes was switched on and off, as if operated by a common spool or a master switch.
From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee
Erased like an old operating system via update, Apple officially said goodbye to Tim Cook as CEO this week.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 4, 2026
The Schwedt refinery has since taken increased deliveries via the Baltic sea ports of Rostock in Germany and Gdansk in Poland, and is now operating at 80 percent of capacity.
From Barron's ● Sep. 4, 2026
Volkswagen said it expects to sell 9 million vehicles a year, with a targeted operating margin of 9% by 2030.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 3, 2026
“Despite operating far offshore in rough conditions at night, they persevered until every person in danger was rescued,” said Master Chief Peter Nelson, the officer in charge of one of the rescue vessels.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 3, 2026
“This is my last night in the machine shop. He reassigned me to the mine. I’ll be operating a loader on the evening shift.”
From "October Sky" by Homer Hickam
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.
