Who needs homologate? We have any number of words that mean "to officially approve something": accredit, affirm, approbate, authorize, certify, confirm, endorse, ratify, sanction, validate, and warrant, to name a few. Homologate has mostly been kept for special occasions. The beauty of homologate is that, etymologically speaking, it's an easy word, consisting as it does of the familiar Greek roots homos, meaning "alike" or "same," and logos, meaning "word" or "speech"—in other words, it suggests saying the same thing. No argument here.
to be effectual, a judge must homologate the plea bargain between the district attorney and the defense
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The prototype, even today, is not street legal or even fit to be used on most tracks, because it was never homologated and therefore lacks a lot of safety components.—Erik Shilling, Robb Report, 13 Oct. 2025 Once a car has been homologated, the specification is locked in for a period of five years.—Sam Abuelsamid, Forbes.com, 10 Sep. 2025 Pricing and Which One to Buy While the Valkyrie has been homologated for street use in other countries, Aston Martin will sell it in the United States only for track use.—Car and Driver, 7 Mar. 2023
Word History
Etymology
Medieval Latin homologatus, past participle of homologare to agree, from Greek homologein, from homologos
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