relegate

American  

[rel-i-geyt] / ˈrɛl ɪˌgeɪt /

verb (used with object)

• relegates,
  present (3rd person singular)
• relegated,
  past participle,  past
• relegating
  present participle

1. to send or consign to an inferior position, place, or condition.

   He has been relegated to a post at the fringes of the diplomatic service.

2. to consign or commit (a matter, task, etc.), as to a person.

   He relegates the less pleasant tasks to his assistant.

   Synonyms:

   entrust, consign, assign

3. to assign or refer (something) to a particular class or kind.

4. to send into exile; banish.

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relegate British  

/ ˈrɛlɪˌɡeɪt /

verb

1. to move to a position of less authority, importance, etc; demote

2. (usually passive) to demote (a football team, etc) to a lower division

3. to assign or refer (a matter) to another or others, as for action or decision

4. (foll by to) to banish or exile

5. to assign (something) to a particular group or category

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• relegation
  noun
• relegable
  adjective
• relegatable
  adjective
• unrelegable
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• relegating
  present
• relegated
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• relegate
  simple
• relegates
  simple
• have relegated
  perfect
• has relegated
  perfect
• am relegating
  progressive
• are relegating
  progressive
• is relegating
  progressive
• have been relegating
  perfect progressive
• has been relegating
  perfect progressive

Past

• relegated
  simple
• had relegated
  perfect
• was relegating
  progressive
• were relegating
  progressive
• had been relegating
  perfect progressive

Future

• will relegate
  simple
• will have relegated
  perfect
• will be relegating
  progressive
• will have been relegating
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of relegate

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English from Latin relēgātus, past participle of relēgāre “to send away, dispatch”; see re-, legate

Explanation

Relegate means "to assign to a lower position." If the quarterback of the football team stops making decent throws, he might be relegated to the position of benchwarmer. Relegate rhymes with delegate — both words derive from the Latin legare, "to send." Relegate means to send someone down in rank. Delegate means to send someone in your place to complete a task. In the workplace, managers who can't figure out how to delegate may get relegated to a lesser rank.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

relegate relegates relegated relegating

“The U.S. now accepts China as a strategic rival and peer versus a country they can try to relegate and control.”

From Barron's ● May 15, 2026

One idea is to relegate certain demanding workloads to superconductors, which conduct electricity with zero resistance and produce almost no heat.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 4, 2026

If it were down to me, though, I would relegate Wolves now and just chop them out of the league.

From BBC ● Dec. 29, 2025

There is no option other than to relegate herself to this turmoil.

From Salon ● Oct. 9, 2025

Aditya looked reproachful in these later sketches, his eyes beckoning the artist to stay with him for just a while longer, to not forget, to not relegate him to these empty pages.

From "When Dimple Met Rishi" by Sandhya Menon

Still, workers clearly have some time before AI relegates them to the permanent underclass.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 4, 2026

In my opinion that all but relegates Wolves now.

From BBC ● Oct. 26, 2025

Apple TV+ is so far down the list of streamers by watch time that Nielsen relegates it to the “other streaming” category of a pie chart.

From Slate ● Jan. 16, 2025

The move relegates Miller Moss to a reserve role after nine uneven starts this season.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 5, 2024

Mr. Henson relegates it to a footnote, and there he declares "once for all, that the Mosaic Law has nothing to do with the question."

From Flowers of Freethought (Second Series) by G. W. (George William) Foote

Back then, phone interruptions were mostly relegated to a few stray pings.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 13, 2026

Burnley, relegated from the Premier League last season, have made a poor start back in the second tier and have not won in five matches under new boss Nicky Hayen.

From BBC ● Sep. 6, 2026

As an organizational psychologist, I’m convinced that Mark’s existential angst is not unique, nor is it relegated to content creators.

From Salon ● Aug. 30, 2026

Still, to many in Moscow, the vote on the statue underscores the extent to which civic life has been relegated to matters of urban planning.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026

If Caroline had been relegated to the devil, she probably would have tamed him as well.

From "Jacob Have I Loved" by Katherine Paterson

There’s something to be said for the virtue of relegating important works to a period of obscurity to turbo-charge the excitement of rediscovery.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 30, 2025

The crown jewels of the arcade industry, they occupy the building's first two floors, relegating video games to the basement and upper levels.

From Barron's ● Dec. 26, 2025

The move was nearly unprecedented; for years, royal councils had made most of the decisions of government, relegating Louis to being, Mr. Hardman tells us, a king “buried in the crown.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 31, 2025

And there I go, relegating the white-ball team to a second-tier status.

From BBC ● Feb. 27, 2025

They accordingly accepted the situation, and, relegating their own golfing efforts to the autumn, turned to the equally congenial task of spoiling the Egyptians.

From "Pip" A Romance of Youth by Ian Hay

Related Words

• consign
• entrust
• refer