delegate

noun del·e·gate \ ˈde-li-gət , -ˌgāt \

|Updated on: 15 Aug 2018

Examples: delegate in a Sentence

Editor's Note: Did You Know?

Definition of delegate

: a person acting for another: such as

a : a representative to a convention or conference

U.N. delegates from African nations

The nominee netted a handful of delegates in the state's caucus.

b government : a representative of a U.S. territory in the House of Representatives

c government : a member of the lower house of the legislature of Maryland, Virginia, or West Virginia

See delegate defined for English-language learners

See delegate defined for kids

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Examples of delegate in a Sentence

the U.N. delegates from African countries
He's been chosen as a delegate to the convention.

Recent Examples of delegate from the Web

Olszewski, a former state delegate from Dundalk, emerged as the winner late Friday over state Sen. Jim Brochin of Cockeysville, County Councilwoman Vicki Almond of Reisterstown and Carney resident Kevin Marron.

— pamela wood, baltimoresun.com, "Deadline for recount request in Baltimore County executive's race is Friday," 9 July 2018
The incumbent delegates in District 34A, Republican Glen Glass and Democrat Mary Ann Lisanti, will move on to the general after winning their parties’ nomination.

— david anderson, The Aegis, "McComas, Wagner win tight Harford primary races after final ballot canvass," 6 July 2018
But by the time the 4,000 delegates from across the nation had found their seats at Husky Stadium, the sun started shining on the inclusive ceremony.

— evan webeck, The Seattle Times, "A little rain gives Special Olympics USA Games’ opening ceremony a Pacific Northwest feel," 1 July 2018
The decision, by a vote of 134 to 65, was made as delegates from around the world gathered in Moscow ahead of the 2018 World Cup kickoff on Thursday.

— joshua robinson, WSJ, "North America to Host 2026 World Cup," 13 June 2018
On Tuesday, as the annual meeting opened, one delegate from Virginia introduced a motion asking that the invitation to Pence be withdrawn and replaced by a time for prayer.

— Fox News, "Pence cheers Southern Baptist Convention as 'one of the greatest forces for good anywhere'," 13 June 2018
Two years ago, in Portland, Ore., the United Methodist Church narrowly avoided schism — breaking up — during a heated General Conference meeting of 800-plus delegates from around the world.

— tim funk, charlotteobserver, "Will views on same-sex marriage split one of America's largest Protestant religions? | Charlotte Observer," 17 May 2018
Conventions in the Senate’s 6th District will have delegates from New Britain, Berlin and Farmington.

— don stacom, Courant Community, "New Britain GOP Wants A Full Slate To Challenge Democrats," 8 May 2018
At the 22nd UNWTO General Assembly, delegates from more than 130 countries were given a strong message: tourism is a power that must be harnessed for the benefit of all.

— tracy maness, Houston Chronicle, "Red Nose Day fights child poverty," 2 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'delegate.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of delegate

Middle English delegat, from Medieval Latin delegatus, from Latin, past participle of delegare to delegate, from de- + legare to send — more at legate

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

delegate Synonyms

Synonyms

agent, assignee, attorney, commissary, deputy, envoy, factor, procurator, proxy, rep, representative;

alternate, backup, pinch hitter, relief, replacement, stand-in, sub, substitute, surrogate, understudy;

informer, operative, spy;

broker, distributor, manager;

arbiter, arbitrator, conciliator, go-between, intercessor, intermediary, interposer, liaison, mediator, middleman, peacemaker;

mouthpiece, point man, point person, prophet, speaker, spokesman, spokesperson;

delegate

verb del·e·gate \ -ˌgāt \

Definition of delegate

delegated; delegating

transitive verb

1 : to entrust to another

delegate authority

delegated the task to her assistant

2 : to appoint as one's representative

intransitive verb

: to assign responsibility or authority

a good manager knows how to delegate

—

delegatee

play \ˌde-li-gə-ˈtē\ noun

—

delegator

play \ˈde-li-ˌgā-tər\ noun

See delegate defined for English-language learners

Examples of delegate in a Sentence

A manager should delegate authority to the best employees.
Those chores can be delegated to someone else.
He doesn't delegate very well.

Recent Examples of delegate from the Web

For this year’s provisions, Anter has made about 45 breakfast wraps and delegated cold-cut wraps to fellow crew member.

— susan selasky, Detroit Free Press, "How 5 Port Huron-to-Mackinac racers feed sailboat crews," 13 July 2018
Poole, Foss, and Montana have all, in large part, delegated planning duties, including making reservations and booking hotels, to their partners.

— cassie shortsleeve, Condé Nast Traveler, "What It’s Really Like to Travel With Alzheimer’s," 28 June 2018
Instead of addressing the core problem, CEOs delegate to HR, which usually tries to address short-term symptoms by pushing out the person who speaks up.

— ellen pao, WIRED, "The Perverse Incentives That Help Incels Thrive in Tech," 19 June 2018
The secretary of state has had the authority to make a determination on Title III since January 2013, when former President Barack Obama delegated the matter to the State Department.

— mimi whitefield, miamiherald, "Trump administration extends ban on lawsuits over confiscated property in Cuba," 28 June 2018
Finally, Hill-Burton delegated the responsibility for assessing health needs to the states.

— jamila michener, Vox, "The politics and policy of racism in American health care," 24 May 2018
Pruitt has said one of his top priorities is delegating more authority to states to enforce environmental laws, though one of the reasons the EPA was created in 1970 was states either were unwilling or unable to hold polluters accountable.

— michael hawthorne, chicagotribune.com, "EPA chief Pruitt overrules agency staff, gives Wisconsin's Walker, Foxconn big break on smog," 2 May 2018
In filings, Kretzer sought a hearing to a recent disclosure of the settlement of a whistleblower lawsuit – which attorneys said previously was unknown to them – that alleged the coroner delegated some duties to unqualified underlings.

— Fox News, "‘Suitcase killer’ who dumped pregnant woman’s naked body in trash set for execution," 27 Mar. 2018
Chen said the one mistake Espinosa made was delegating the removal of the red tag notices to MacIntyre, rather than doing it himself.

— kimberly veklerov, SFChronicle.com, "Oakland finds likely collusion between inspector, property owner in eviction," 1 July 2018

Did You Know?

To "delegate" is literally or figuratively to send another in one's place, an idea that is reflected in the word’s origin; it is a descendant of Latin legare, meaning "to send as an emissary." Other English words that can be traced back to "legare" include "legate" ("a usually official emissary"), "legacy," "colleague," and "relegate." The noun delegate, meaning "a person acting for another," entered English in the 15th century, followed by the verb in the next century.