predicate

American  

[pred-i-kit, pred-i-keyt] / ˈprɛd ɪ kɪt, ˈprɛd ɪˌkeɪt /

noun

predicates plural

1. Grammar. (in many languages, such as English) one of the two main parts of a sentence, containing the verb and any of its objects, modifiers, or other completions, and generally expressing an action, state, or condition: for example, got here quickly in Larry got here quickly, or ate a cookie in I ate a cookie, or slept in The exhausted student slept.

2. Logic. that which is affirmed or denied concerning the subject of a proposition.

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verb (used with object)

predicates, present (3rd person singular) predicated, past participle, past predicating present participle

1. to found or derive (a statement, action, etc.); base (usually followed byon ): The modern situation is predicated on the illusion of total independence.

   He predicated his behavior on his faith in humanity.

   The modern situation is predicated on the illusion of total independence.

2. to proclaim; declare; affirm; assert.

   A spokesperson predicated that the Supreme Court wouldn't overrule the doctrine of dual sovereignty.

3. Logic.

   1. to affirm or assert (something) of the subject of a proposition.

   2. to make (a term) the predicate of such a proposition.

4. to connote; imply.

   His retraction predicates a change of attitude.

verb (used without object)

predicates, present (3rd person singular) predicated, past participle, past predicating present participle

1. to make an affirmation or assertion.

adjective

1. predicated.

2. Grammar. belonging to the predicate.

   a predicate noun.

predicate British  

verb

1. (also intr; when tr, may take a clause as object) to proclaim, declare, or affirm

2. to imply or connote

3. to base or found (a proposition, argument, etc)

4. logic

   1. to assert or affirm (a property, characteristic, or condition) of the subject of a proposition

   2. to make (a term, expression, etc) the predicate of a proposition

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noun

1. grammar

   1. the part of a sentence in which something is asserted or denied of the subject of a sentence; one of the two major components of a sentence, the other being the subject

   2. ( as modifier )

      a predicate adjective

2. logic

   1. an expression that is derived from a sentence by the deletion of a name

   2. a property, characteristic, or attribute that may be affirmed or denied of something. The categorial statement all men are mortal relates two predicates, is a man and is mortal

   3. the term of a categorial proposition that is affirmed or denied of its subject. In this example all men is the subject, and mortal is the predicate

   4. a function from individuals to truth values, the truth set of the function being the extension of the predicate

adjective

1. of or relating to something that has been predicated

predicate Cultural  

1. The part of a sentence that shows what is being said about the subject. The predicate includes the main verb and all its modifiers. In the following sentence, the italicized portion is the predicate: “Olga's dog was the ugliest creature on four legs.”

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Usage

What does predicate mean? The predicate is the part of the sentence or clause that says what the subject is or isn’t doing. In the sentence I ran, the subject is I. The subject is the person, place, or thing that is performing an action. The predicate in this sentence is ran and is the action that the subject is performing. A predicate always contains a verb, which may actually be a verb phrase. In the sentence I ran away from the angry dog, the entire predicate is ran away from the angry dog. In this case, the verb ran is being modified by a prepositional phrase that says what the subject of the sentence (I) was running from. You can also have a compound predicate, in which one subject is performing more than one action at the same time. In the sentence, My sister studies French and works at a fancy restaurant, the subject (my sister) is performing two actions (studies French and works at a fancy restaurant). In this sentence, the two predicates are joined by the conjunction and. Some sentences can be very long and complex, as in After explaining the differences between Batman and Man-Bat, my friend spoke for hours about the long and intricate history of batty superheroes. But just remember that the predicate is everything that says what a subject is doing. Clauses contain at least one subject and predicate but isn’t necessarily a complete sentence. For example, in I told him about the girl that I once knew, that I once knew is a clause. The clause contains the subject I and the predicate once knew.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• predication
  noun
• subpredicate
  noun
• nonpredicative
  adjective
• predicative
  adjective
• subpredicative
  adjective
• unpredicated
  adjective
• unpredicative
  adjective
• nonpredicatively
  adverb
• predicatively
  adverb
• unpredicatively
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• predicates
  plural

Participles

• predicating
  present
• predicated
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• predicate
  simple
• predicates
  simple
• have predicated
  perfect
• has predicated
  perfect
• am predicating
  progressive
• are predicating
  progressive
• is predicating
  progressive
• have been predicating
  perfect progressive
• has been predicating
  perfect progressive

Past

• predicated
  simple
• had predicated
  perfect
• was predicating
  progressive
• were predicating
  progressive
• had been predicating
  perfect progressive

Future

• will predicate
  simple
• will have predicated
  perfect
• will be predicating
  progressive
• will have been predicating
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of predicate

First recorded in 1400–50; (noun) late Middle English, from Middle French predicat or from Medieval Latin praedicātum, noun use of neuter of Latin praedicātus “declared publicly,” past participle of praedicāre “to declare publicly, assert” ( see pre- ( def. ), indicate ( def. )); (verb and adjective) from Latin praedicātus; see preach ( def. )

Explanation

The predicate is the part of a sentence that includes the verb and verb phrase. The predicate of "The boys went to the zoo" is "went to the zoo." We change the pronunciation of this noun ("PRED-uh-kit") when we turn it into a verb ("PRED-uh-kate"). The verb predicate means to require something as a condition of something else, and we use this term mostly in connection with logic, mathematics, or rhetoric. To predicate your argument on certain facts is to use those facts as evidence.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

predicate predicates predicated predicating

After a review of the Epstein case last year, DOJ and FBI officials said in a July 2025 memo that they “did not uncover evidence that could predicate an investigation against uncharged third parties.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 1, 2026

“There is no predicate action that the individual plaintiffs would need to take, other than simply going about their lives, to potentially be subject to the challenged stops,” the opinion said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 2, 2025

The memo adds that investigators "did not uncover evidence that could predicate an investigation against uncharged third parties".

From BBC ● Jul. 7, 2025

One predicate crime is “fraud,” and that has deluged courts with civil lawsuits alleging fraud in securities sales and marketing, which for the most part is far from what the statute contemplates.

From Slate ● May 21, 2025

Subjects are special: all verbs have one, and it sits outside the verb phrase, occupying one of the two major branches of the clause, the other being the predicate.

From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker

ECB President Christine Lagarde said current information predicates "another 50 basis point rise at our next meeting and possibly at the one after that, and possibly thereafter," prompting traders to jack up Europe's rate expectations.

From Reuters ● Dec. 16, 2022

And some sentences express multiple relations between predicates and objects.

From Textbooks ● Jun. 15, 2022

The national project predicates itself on maintaining a specific, widely disseminated version of history.

From Scientific American ● Mar. 2, 2022

“For a party that predicates itself on inclusivity,” he added, “I’m afraid we’re acting awfully exclusive.”

From Seattle Times ● Nov. 6, 2021

At recess, I sit beneath a tree with my notebook and review subjects and predicates and frac- tions while the other children play.

From "The Queen of Water" by Laura Resau

The number of social-media groups and threads predicated on the opinion that Bowlero/Lucky Strike absolutely sucks testifies to the number of both serious bowlers and casual enthusiasts who see the corporation as an invasive rot.

From Salon ● Jul. 3, 2026

A weaker debut may have been viewed as a failure, but much stronger performance would have raised further concerns around a valuation predicated on “pure hype,” he said in a newsletter.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 15, 2026

For you, is the premise of the show predicated on the idea that someone like you would never get that part, or is it that, of course you should get that?

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 11, 2026

These deals are predicated on continued exponential growth of demand for AI cloud computing over the next four years–particularly at OpenAI–and that’s far from guaranteed.

From Barron's ● Jun. 10, 2026

The notion that all racial caste systems are necessarily predicated on a desire to harm other racial groups, and that racial hostility is the essence of racism, is fundamentally misguided.

From "The New Jim Crow" by Michelle Alexander

But officials in March warned that already low snowpack levels were dwindling, predicating a critically dry year for the state.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 19, 2021

Coll documents the company’s consistent efforts to block international climate agreements and also its deceitful campaign to debunk science while predicating its own planning on that very science. 

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 27, 2017

“They were not longitudinal. They did no research. None. They were predicating this on some anecdotal evidence and looks at other sports, but those are apples and oranges.”

From New York Times ● Sep. 10, 2014

And to be clear, I am predicating my advice on the understanding that your cheating days are over.

From New York Times ● May 2, 2013

Here be no pigmies, predicating the outcome of little factions, no discourse about the smallness of word-meanings; but vast populations are arrayed under our eye.

From English Lands Letters and Kings Queen Anne and the Georges by Mitchell, Donald G.