perpetrate

[ pur-pi-treyt ]

See synonyms for: perpetrate perpetrated perpetrating perpetrator on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object),per·pe·trat·ed, per·pe·trat·ing.

to commit: to perpetrate a crime.
to present, execute, or do in a poor or tasteless manner: Who perpetrated this so-called comedy?

Origin of perpetrate

First recorded in 1540–50; from Latin perpetrātus (past participle of perpetrāre “to carry out, execute, perform”), equivalent to per- per- + -petr- (combining form of patrāre “to father, bring abou”t; see pater) + -ā- thematic vowel + -tus past participle suffix; see -ate¹

Other words from perpetrate

per·pe·tra·ble [pur-pi-truh-buhl], /ˈpɜr pɪ trə bəl/, adjective
per·pe·tra·tion [pur-pi-trey-shuhn], /ˌpɜr pɪˈtreɪ ʃən/, noun
per·pe·tra·tor, noun
non·per·pe·tra·tion, noun

Words that may be confused with perpetrate

perpetrate , perpetuate

Words Nearby perpetrate

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

How to use perpetrate in a sentence

Bush and his advisers were mortified that they had allowed this uniquely horrific attack on American soil, and their focus was on punishing those who had perpetrated it, as well as those who sheltered them.
It wasn’t hubris that drove America into Afghanistan. It was fear. | Robert Kagan | August 26, 2021 | Washington Post
The corruption and fraud that is being perpetrated by our government is absurd.
Inside One Combat Vet's Journey From Defending His Country to Storming the Capitol | W.J. Hennigan/Washington | July 9, 2021 | Time
Without fully understanding what steps were taken, if any, to investigate these alleged crimes, there is no assurance that the individuals who may have perpetrated these crimes have been apprehended.
Metro Transit Police can’t document whether officers investigated thousands of reported crimes, watchdog says | Justin George, Michael Laris | July 1, 2021 | Washington Post
In a New York Times Magazine article last year, Francesca Mari documented the egregious harms perpetrated by these landlords on struggling Americans.
Wall Street isn’t to blame for the chaotic housing market | Jerusalem Demsas | June 11, 2021 | Vox
That decade saw some of the worst state-sanctioned racial violence perpetrated along the border.
The bright side of a bad Texas history bill? It’s too late to whitewash the past. | John González, Benjamin Johnson | June 4, 2021 | Washington Post

As in Nazi Germany, it is usually governments driven by greed or power calculations that perpetrate such crimes.
Still a Problem From Hell, Two Decades After Rwanda | John Prendergast | April 8, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
If the auctioneer could afterward do this he might change the name, substitute another, and so perpetrate a fraud.
Putnam's Handy Law Book for the Layman | Albert Sidney Bolles
The evils forbidden therein none should perpetrate, either on others or on himself.
The Ordinance of Covenanting | John Cunningham
It is notorious that a mob will commit atrocities which a single individual could scarcely be tempted to perpetrate.
Continental Monthly, Vol. 4, No 3, September 1863 | Various
Occasionally they are joined by Indians, and these latter are always conspicuous for the cruelties they perpetrate.
Travels in Peru, on the Coast, in the Sierra, Across the Cordilleras and the Andes, into the Primeval Forests | J. J. von Tschudi
But surely Christianity should not be condemned for what it forbids men to perpetrate under pain of the Divine displeasure.
The Sheepfold and the Common, Vol. II (of 2) | Timothy East

British Dictionary definitions for perpetrate

perpetrate

/ (ˈpɜːpɪˌtreɪt) /

verb

(tr) to perform or be responsible for (a deception, crime, etc)

Origin of perpetrate

C16: from Latin perpetrāre, from per- (thoroughly) + patrāre to perform, perhaps from pater father, leader in the performance of sacred rites

usage For perpetrate

Perpetrate and perpetuate are sometimes confused: he must answer for the crimes he has perpetrated (not perpetuated); the book helped to perpetuate (not perpetrate) some of the myths surrounding his early life

Derived forms of perpetrate

perpetration, noun
perpetrator, noun

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

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