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

Alexander Mercado, 20, allegedly administered a Signal group chat used to plan the attack and later deleted evidence after speaking with the FBI. — Rena Rowe, The Washington Examiner, 26 June 2026

The photo has since been deleted. — Jessica Schladebeck, New York Daily News, 25 June 2026

Lara has had TikTok deleted for the past three weeks. — Elizabeth Gulino, Allure, 25 June 2026

The TikTok video, and another announcement on Instagram with photos and videos of Sadé Rose, have since been deleted. — Francie Ebert, NBC news, 25 June 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