originate
Americanverb (used without object)
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to take its origin or rise; begin; start; arise.
The practice originated during the Middle Ages.
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(of a train, bus, or other public conveyance) to begin a scheduled run at a specified place.
This train originates at Philadelphia.
verb (used with object)
verb
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to come or bring into being
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(intr) (of a bus, train, etc) to begin its journey at a specified point
Related Words
See discover.
Other Word Forms
- originable adjective
- origination noun
- originator noun
- self-originated adjective
- self-originating adjective
- self-origination noun
Etymology
Origin of originate
First recorded in 1645–55; probably back formation from origination (from French ), from Latin orīginātiō “etymology”; origin, -ate 1, ion
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.
Pezeshkian instead directly acknowledged that neighbouring countries had been targeted and said Iranian forces had now been asked to stop striking them unless attacks on Iran originate from their territory.
From BBC • Mar. 7, 2026
Must invention remain exclusively human, or can autonomous computational systems genuinely originate ideas?
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 6, 2026
These rare steroid molecules appeared to originate from ancient sea sponges.
From Science Daily • Feb. 27, 2026
Companies: The Federal Reserve prepared rule changes incentivizing banks to originate mortgages.
From Barron's • Feb. 21, 2026
From which tribe did her ancestors originate and what did she know of their constitutions?
From "The Underground Railroad: A Novel" by Colson Whitehead
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.
