delete

verb

de·​lete di-ˈlēt 

dē-

deleted; deleting

transitive verb

: to eliminate especially by blotting out, cutting out, or erasing

delete a passage in a manuscript

delete a computer file

The email was accidentally deleted.

deletable

di-ˈlē-tə-bəl 

dē-

adjective

an easily deletable photo

Synonyms of delete

• cancel
• erase
• remove
• censor

Examples of delete in a Sentence

Delete this name from the list.

When the movie was shown on TV all the swearwords had been deleted.

Recent Examples on the Web

But many types of health information that steadily flowed from the government for years or decades has been delayed, deleted and in some cases stopped altogether. —Mike Stobbe, Los Angeles Times, 18 Feb. 2026

The new method basically deletes climate change from the whole equation, which makes El Niño easier to spot. —Andrew Freedman, CNN Money, 17 Feb. 2026

Companies that did not fulfill the criteria for inclusion in the ranking were deleted. —Time Staff, Time, 17 Feb. 2026

Searchlight said the digital and Blu-ray versions of the film will include bonus materials, such as behind the scenes with Fraser and director Hikari and deleted/extended scenes. —Saman Shafiq, USA Today, 17 Feb. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Latin deletus, past participle of delēre to wipe out, destroy

First Known Use

1540, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing delete

• delete key

Rhymes for delete

• amit
• athlete
• backseat
• blackfeet
• broadsheet
• browbeat
• buckwheat
• compete
• compleat
• complete
• conceit
• concrete

Kids Definition

delete

verb

de·​lete di-ˈlēt 

deleted; deleting

: to eliminate especially by blotting out, cutting out, or erasing

delete a part of the story

delete a computer file

deletion

di-ˈlē-shən

noun