operate
Americanverb (used without object)
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operates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
operated,
past participle, past
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operating
present participle
-
to work, perform, or function, as a machine does.
This engine does not operate properly.
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to work or use a machine, apparatus, or the like.
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to act effectively; produce an effect; exert force or influence (often followed by on orupon ).
Their propaganda is beginning to operate on the minds of the people.
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to perform some process of work or treatment.
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Surgery. to perform a surgical procedure.
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(of a drug) to produce the effect intended.
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Military.
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to carry on operations in war.
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to give orders and accomplish military acts, as distinguished from doing staff work.
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to carry on transactions in securities, or some commodity, especially speculatively or on a large scale.
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Informal. to use devious means for one's own gain; insinuate oneself; finagle.
a man who knows how to operate with the ladies.
verb (used with object)
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operates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
operated,
past participle, past
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operating
present participle
-
to manage or use (a machine, device, etc.).
Do you know how to operate a forklift?
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to put or keep (a factory, industrial system, ranch, etc.) working or in operation.
to operate a coal mine.
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to bring about, effect, or produce, as by action or the exertion of force or influence.
verb
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to function or cause to function
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(tr) to control the functioning of
operate a machine
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to manage, direct, run, or pursue (a business, system, etc)
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(intr) to perform a surgical operation (upon a person or animal)
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(intr) to produce a desired or intended effect
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to treat or process in a particular or specific way
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(intr) to conduct military or naval operations
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(intr) to deal in securities on a stock exchange
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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reoperateverb (used with object)
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preoperateverb (used without object)
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operatableadjective
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unoperatableadjective
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unoperatedadjective
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well-operatedadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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operatesimple
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operatessimple
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have operatedperfect
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has operatedperfect
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am operatingprogressive
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are operatingprogressive
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is operatingprogressive
-
have been operatingperfect progressive
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has been operatingperfect progressive
Past
-
operatedsimple
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had operatedperfect
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was operatingprogressive
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were operatingprogressive
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had been operatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of operate
First recorded in 1600–10; from Late Latin operātus, past participle of operārī, -āre “to work, be efficacious, effect, produce,” Latin: “to busy oneself,” verbal derivative of opera effort, work, akin to opus “work”; see -ate 1
Explanation
You'll want to find a skilled surgeon to operate on your hand. Once your hand is working again, you'll be able to operate your buzz saw with ease. Operate comes from a Latin root related to opus, "work," and it's a verb that can be used for all kinds of work. Your computer can operate smoothly, the lottery can operate successfully, your school can operate a day care center in some vacant classrooms, and you can operate your vehicle in a safe manner. If you're an unshakable optimist, your friends may say you "operate in a dream world."
Vocabulary lists containing operate
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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.
See Examples For:
Virgin is planning to buy 12 high-speed trains from Alstom to operate on the route.
From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026
Poudel said AI and other emerging technologies are expected to depend increasingly on neuromorphic computing, which is designed to operate more like the human brain.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 17, 2026
According to TechCrunch, “the private sector can defend against incoming cyberattacks, but not launch of operate them,” a policy that spans several presidential administrations.
From Salon ● Aug. 17, 2026
The channels are tolerated by authorities but operate in a legal grey area as they use information from air force contacts.
From Barron's ● Aug. 16, 2026
“Not directly. I cannot do that—the surgeon might take it amiss and that would not do; he must operate on Mother.”
From "All Quiet on the Western Front: A Novel" by Erich Maria Remarque
A Serve Robotics spokesperson said that users in the 40 L.A. neighborhoods the company currently operates in will remain unaffected, as the food delivery contract with Uber doesn’t expire until early 2027.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2026
Using these materials, the team created a memory resistor, known as a "memristor," that operates with very little energy.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 17, 2026
Run by Chairman and Chief Executive Bill Ford, it focuses on growth investing but also operates businesses around credit, climate and infrastructure.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 17, 2026
The 19-year-old, sporting a budding beard, usually operates from home, filling lulls by watching the TV show Criminal Minds or honing his drone-flying skills on a simulator.
From Barron's ● Aug. 16, 2026
Darwin himself could scarcely have found a better example of the operation of natural selection than is provided by the way the mechanism of resistance operates.
From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson
The Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, which is operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, conducts Hubble science operations for NASA.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 17, 2026
Pagers are small battery operated radio receivers - popular in the 1980s and 1990s - that can receive short text messages, numbers to call, or alerts.
From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026
The field will be operated by BP and each party will have an equal working interest.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
Still, it has operated unlike most other public companies.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026
“It’s where they operated on him,” she answered.
From "Auggie & Me" by R. J. Palacio
"So this means that often obstructions are put in place, like having the availability of an operating theatre in which you can perform the procedures, or availability of support staff."
From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026
Ali Kashani, CEO of Serve Robotics, said in an earnings call that the blowup was “caused by changes in the operating model and integration of our fleet.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2026
OpenAI expects the project to create 35,000 temporary construction jobs over six years and 2,500 "long-term operating jobs," it said in a blog post.
From Barron's ● Aug. 17, 2026
The Hubble Space Telescope has been operating for over three decades and continues to make ground-breaking discoveries that shape our fundamental understanding of the universe.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 17, 2026
By Christmastime, we were all operating at the edge.
From "March Forward, Girl" by Melba Pattillo Beals
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.
