annotate

verb

an·​no·​tate ˈa-nə-ˌtāt 

annotated; annotating

intransitive verb

: to make or furnish critical or explanatory notes or comment

transitive verb

: to make or furnish annotations (see annotation sense 1) for (something, such as a literary work or subject)

annotated his translation of Dante's Divine Comedy

annotative

ˈa-nə-ˌtā-tiv 

adjective

annotator

ˈa-nə-ˌtā-tər 

noun

Examples of annotate in a Sentence

He annotated the text at several places.

Recent Examples on the Web

Unfortunately, the tool doesn't work with touch monitors for annotating with a stylus. —PC Magazine, 28 May 2025

Drawing tools allow customers to annotate charts in real-time. —Robb Report Studio, Robb Report, 22 May 2025

See the messages here, annotated by Julian and other Times journalists. —Julian E. Barnes, New York Times, 27 Mar. 2025

Even in academic integrity, the focus is on metacognition, not surveillance: Students are invited to review and annotate their own writing changes, putting them in the driver’s seat as learners, not just subjects of detection. —Dr. Aviva Legatt, Forbes.com, 6 June 2025

Word History

Etymology

Latin annotatus, past participle of annotare, from ad- + notare to mark — more at note

First Known Use

1693, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Rhymes for annotate

• abdicate
• abrogate
• acetate
• activate
• actuate
• adsorbate
• aggravate
• agitate
• alginate
• alienate
• allocate
• amputate

Kids Definition

annotate

verb

an·​no·​tate ˈan-ə-ˌtāt 

annotated; annotating

: to make or add explanatory notes

annotator

-ˌtāt-ər 

noun

Legal Definition

annotate

verb

an·​no·​tate ˈa-nə-ˌtāt 

annotated; annotating

intransitive verb

: to make or write an annotation

transitive verb

: to make or write annotations for

annotator

-ˌtā-tər 

noun