dictate
dictate is defined in Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1913) with 4 senses. The full text of each entry is reproduced verbatim below.
Definitions
- 1.To say; to utter; to communicate authoritatively; to deliver (a command) to a subordinate; to declare with authority; to impose; as, to dictate the terms of a treaty; a general dictates orders to his troops. Whatsoever is dictated to us by God must be believed. Watts.
- 2.To speak as a superior; to command; to impose conditions (on). Who presumed to dictate to the sovereign. Macaulay.
- 3.To compose literary works; to tell what shall be written or said by another. Sylla could not skill of letters, and therefore knew not how to dictate. Bacon.
- 4.A statement delivered with authority; an order; a command; an authoritative rule, principle, or maxim; a prescription; as, listen to the dictates of your conscience; the dictates of the gospel. I credit what the Grecian dictates say. Prior.
Source: Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913 edition (public domain, via GCIDE / Project Gutenberg).
Synonyms
Synonyms (Webster's 1913)
- admonish
- admonition
- command
- direction suggestion
- enjoin
- impulse
- injunction
- point out
- prescribe
- to suggest
- urge
Source: Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913 edition (public domain, via GCIDE / Project Gutenberg).
Related questions
Reverse-dictionary questions
Definition-first questions whose answer is dictate.
- What is to speak as a superior; to command; to impose conditions (on). Who presumed to dictate to the sovereign. Macaulay called?
- What is to compose literary works; to tell what shall be written or said by another. Sylla could not skill of letters, and therefore knew not how to dictate. Bacon called?
Sources
- Definitions: Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913 edition (public domain, via GCIDE / Project Gutenberg).
- Canonical URL: https://worddirectanswers.com/word/dictate
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