validate
Americanverb (used with object)
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to make valid; substantiate; confirm.
Time validated our suspicions.
- Synonyms:
- prove, verify, authenticate
- Antonyms:
- disprove
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to give legal force to; legalize.
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to give official sanction, confirmation, or approval to, as elected officials, election procedures, documents, etc..
to validate a passport.
verb
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to confirm or corroborate
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to give legal force or official confirmation to; declare legally valid
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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validationnoun
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validatornoun
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revalidateverb (used with object)
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unvalidatedadjective
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unvalidatingadjective
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validatoryadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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validatesimple
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validatessimple
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have validatedperfect
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has validatedperfect
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am validatingprogressive
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are validatingprogressive
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is validatingprogressive
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have been validatingperfect progressive
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has been validatingperfect progressive
Past
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validatedsimple
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had validatedperfect
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was validatingprogressive
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were validatingprogressive
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had been validatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of validate
First recorded in 1640–50; from Medieval Latin validātus (past participle of validāre “to make valid”), equivalent to valid- ( see valid) + -ātus past participle suffix ( see -ate 1)
Explanation
To validate is to prove that something is based on truth or fact, or is acceptable. It can also mean to make something, like a contract, legal. You may need someone to validate your feelings, which means that you want to hear, “No, you’re not crazy. It’s acceptable to be angry about that.” Or you may need someone to validate your parking ticket — which means you have to prove that you bought something, so you can get parking for free. Whatever it is you are seeking to validate needs the added support or action from someone else to make it valid.
Vocabulary lists containing validate
The SAT: Language of the Test, List 2
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The New SAT: The Language of the Test
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The ACT: The Language of the Test, List 3
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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.
Researchers in Rostock are also helping validate the technology for future clinical use.
From Science Daily • Jul. 10, 2026
“This phase allows us to validate our technology for fully autonomous operations as we work to bring riders even more ways to enjoy Waymo in the future,” the company said.
From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 9, 2026
In April, the head of the International Energy Agency, an intergovernmental organisation that advises on energy policy, appeared to validate Miliband's scepticism.
From BBC • Jul. 8, 2026
Pan thinks the annual preliminary benchmark revision to payroll data, to be released in September, may validate the nonfarm payroll estimates, something that hasn’t happened in recent years.
From Barron's • Jun. 5, 2026
In such cases, voters were asked to validate their ballots by taking an oath assuring that they were legally permitted to vote.
From "Votes for Women!" by Winifred Conkling
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.
