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

• 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

Megan later deleted the clip, but the video had already made its rounds online. —Amber Corrine, VIBE.com, 14 July 2025

In a scathing rant on X (which has since been deleted), Musk criticized the Trump administration's handling of the Epstein records. —Meredith Kile, People.com, 14 July 2025

The latest example is the Pentagon, which was forced to delete and then repost a video featuring Defense Sec. —Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 14 July 2025

Indiana Fever president Kelly Krauskopf appeared to delete her X account, and social media users took notice ahead of the team's Friday night win over the Atlanta Dream. —Jackson Thompson, FOXNews.com, 12 July 2025

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