rotate

¹ American  

[roh-teyt, roh-teyt] / ˈroʊ teɪt, roʊˈteɪt /

verb (used with object)

• rotates,
  present (3rd person singular)
• rotated,
  past participle,  past
• rotating
  present participle

1. to cause to turn around an axis or center point; revolve.

   Synonyms:

   whirl, wheel

2. to cause to go through a cycle of changes; cause to pass or follow in a fixed routine of succession.

   to rotate farm crops.

3. to replace (a person, troops, etc.) by another or others, usually according to a schedule or plan.

---

verb (used without object)

• rotates,
  present (3rd person singular)
• rotated,
  past participle,  past
• rotating
  present participle

1. to turn around on or as if on an axis.

2. to proceed in a fixed routine of succession.

   The sentries rotated in keeping watch.

rotate ² American  

[roh-teyt] / ˈroʊ teɪt /

adjective

1. wheel-shaped: applied especially to a gamopetalous short-tubed corolla with a spreading limb.

---

rotate British  

verb

1. to turn or cause to turn around an axis, line, or point; revolve or spin

2. to follow or cause to follow a set order or sequence

3. (of a position, presidency, etc) to pass in turn from one eligible party to each of the other eligible parties

4. (of staff) to replace or be replaced in turn

---

adjective

1. botany designating a corolla the united petals of which radiate from a central point like the spokes of a wheel

Synonym Usage

See turn.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonrotatable
  adjective
• nonrotating
  adjective
• rotatable
  adjective
• unrotated
  adjective
• unrotating
  adjective
• rotatably
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Participles

• rotating
  present
• rotated
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• rotate
  simple
• rotates
  simple
• have rotated
  perfect
• has rotated
  perfect
• am rotating
  progressive
• are rotating
  progressive
• is rotating
  progressive
• have been rotating
  perfect progressive
• has been rotating
  perfect progressive

Past

• rotated
  simple
• had rotated
  perfect
• was rotating
  progressive
• were rotating
  progressive
• had been rotating
  perfect progressive

Future

• will rotate
  simple
• will have rotated
  perfect
• will be rotating
  progressive
• will have been rotating
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of rotate¹

First recorded in 1800–10; from Latin rotātus (past participle of rotāre “to cause to spin, roll, move in a circle”), equivalent to rot(a) “wheel” + -ātus -ate ¹

Origin of rotate²

1775–85; < Latin rot ( a ) wheel + -ate ¹

Explanation

Rotate means to circle around a center point. Wheels on a car rotate, planets rotate, and if you're an ice skater, you rotate on the blade of a skate when you do your spins. Rotate can also mean that you take turns performing a job. If you, Jim, and Shelia all got the same amount of votes in the class election, you could rotate the role of treasurer, meaning the position would pass from one to another in a regular pattern. Rotate can also refer to other things that are passed along in a regular order. You might rotate lawn duties with your brother — that means you mow the lawn one week and he mows it the next.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

rotate rotates rotated rotating

But fewer matches in other competitions does mean a team can rotate less, often have a full week of preparation between games and be less susceptible to injuries.

From BBC ● Jul. 30, 2026

And because the cars can rotate 360 degrees, Universal can in theory direct rider yells away from the studio below and the neighborhood nearby.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026

When his team tried to rotate out after its two-week mission, they were denied permission.

From Slate ● Jul. 14, 2026

“Having finished the best-ever quarter, chip stocks have seen strong selling pressure, with the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index down overnight, as investors realize some profits and rotate into other sectors.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 8, 2026

Og set the dance floor’s gravity on a counterclockwise spin, making all of our avatars slowly rotate around the club’s invisible central axis, like motes of dust floating inside a snow globe.

From "Ready Player One: A Novel" by Ernest Cline

Traditionally, the UN's top job rotates between different regions.

From Barron's ● Jul. 30, 2026

It’s about the fact that the Lotus’s polar axis runs exactly through the driver’s inboard hip, so that the machine rotates around them and not some invisible pivot point, just off-center.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 25, 2026

When the market rotates, everything you own falls at once.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 22, 2026

For instance, G 203-47's red dwarf rotates once every 100 or so days, but orbits its white dwarf every 14.9 days, meaning they are not tidally synced.

From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026

As in she rotates her body 720 degrees while doing a straight-bodied backflip.

From "Odd One Out" by Nic Stone

—Asian stocks were mostly higher as investors rotated back into artificial-intelligence names, though gains were capped by unease over the Middle East.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 17, 2026

I rotated among brands to lessen the likelihood that these additives would heavily influence my results.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 27, 2026

Tongue took one wicket in two matches and was expensive at Lord's, conceding 43 runs from five overs, while Mahmood took 2-52 in Cardiff but was rotated out for Tongue for the series finale.

From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026

They recorded how the sprinklers rotated, observed the water moving both inside and outside the devices, and measured the torque or twisting force produced when the sprinklers were prevented from turning.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 17, 2026

It then trickled along chutes that zigzagged along the side of the building, causing a series of water wheels with spokes to ping three sets of miniature wind chimes as they rotated.

From "The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street" by Karina Yan Glaser

Health AI needs its own crash test: a rotating set of real clinical cases, kept confidential, presented to any AI that Americans consult for medical advice.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026

Gianni: At 1% owned Rushworth is worth a look if you're going with two cheap rotating goalkeepers.

From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026

Basically, investors have continued rotating among different sectors and styles instead of exiting stocks altogether.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 4, 2026

He is now starting a new role as a rotating anchor on two of Fox’s local L.A. news stations.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 3, 2026

I held this position, warm, my brain rotating, the seconds whirring by.

From "It’s Kind of a Funny Story" by Ned Vizzini

Related Words

• pivot
• revolve
• spin
• swivel
• twirl
• twist
• whirl