dictate 1 of 2

verb

ˈdik-ˌtāt How to pronounce dictate (audio)
Definition of dictatenext
as in to order
to request the doing of by virtue of one's authority dictated that the terms of surrender be negotiated by his senior staff

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

dictate

2 of 2

noun

ˈdik-ˌtāt How to pronounce dictate (audio)
as in order
a statement of what to do that must be obeyed by those concerned a starchily worded dictate from on high concerning the company's dress code

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of dictate
Verb
The team, led by the calm and collected Julius Pollard, are fantastic, fun, and, if nature dictates, will readily break into an impromptu turtle rescue mission—as happened on my recent trip. — Jonnie Bayfield, Condé Nast Traveler, 19 July 2026 The Office of the State Auditor maintained that its interest in a Midland site was based on expanding geographic access to early voting, not dictating the county’s final plan. — Nora O'Neill, Charlotte Observer, 18 July 2026
Noun
The downturn bolsters the longstanding theory that the Bitcoin market follows the dictates of US election cycles. — Joe Wilkins, Futurism, 3 June 2026 And Algorithmic Transparency To balance rapid technological growth with core values, leaders should implement rigorous ethical guardrails that ensure AI integration serves the mission rather than just the dictates of high-tech donors. — Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 28 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for dictate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dictate
  1. order
  2. instruction
  3. request
  4. edict
  5. ask
  6. direction
  7. require
  8. directive
Verb
  • Sides include fries, which can be ordered regular or topped with cheese or steak.
    — Ella Gonzales, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 19 July 2026
  • Saurav Das, chief spokesperson of the Cockroach Janata Party, disputed the police account, saying the court had not ordered Wangchuk’s forcible removal.
    — Aijaz Hussain, Los Angeles Times, 19 July 2026
Definition of order
Noun
  • But a Canadian legislator took that idea to an embarrassing new level this week, reading an apparent LLM prompt instruction into the record during a floor speech.
    — Kyle Orland, ArsTechnica, 24 July 2026
  • Each specific kind of peptide carries a different instruction, explains LaValle, who is also chair of the International Peptide Society.
    — Maggie Ryan, Flow Space, 24 July 2026
Definition of instruction
Verb
  • Calls have been received requesting specific information as to the location of offices in specific buildings.
    — David Goodhue, Miami Herald, 25 July 2026
  • The Charlotte Observer has also requested comment from Anson County officials and the Anson County Sheriff’s Office.
    — Nora O'Neill, Charlotte Observer, 25 July 2026
Definition of request
Noun
  • Getty Images for Ascot Racecourse The highly agile Getty shooter Alan Crowhurst has done us a great favor by bringing concrete cloakroom evidence of the many social and administrative challenges that the (famous) Royal Ascot costume edicts require in order to be properly met.
    — Guy Martin, Forbes.com, 21 June 2026
  • The memorandum includes a pledge by Iran to never purchase or construct nuclear weapons — a vow the Islamic Republic has made multiple times before, including by signing the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, in a religious edict issued by the late supreme leader and in the Obama-era nuclear accord.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 18 June 2026
Definition of edict
Verb
  • Of significance, the city is asking the Blazers to pay $3 million annually for a property tax offset, which would escalate over time.
    — Jason Quick, New York Times, 20 July 2026
  • Some hospitality workers may have been asked to work longer hours during the games for higher pay – but that wouldn’t show up meaningfully in the jobs report.
    — David Goldman, CNN Money, 20 July 2026
Definition of ask
Noun
  • Josh Brolin's 2014 reveal as Thanos, donning the Infinity Gauntlet, set the direction for an entire saga years in advance.
    — Hannah Abraham, Forbes.com, 26 July 2026
  • The flames are approaching Bordeaux again after the wind changed direction at midday, prefect Sophie Brocas said.
    — Nadine El-Bawab, ABC News, 25 July 2026
Definition of direction
Verb
  • Graham said, in one case, staff helped arrange transportation after a school required a young mother to walk more than a mile to a bus stop while carrying her baby, books and backpack.
    — Miami Herald, Miami Herald, 24 July 2026
  • DeepSeek challenged the conventional wisdom that developing an advanced AI model requires massive financial investment and vast computing power, and offered competitive pricing.
    — John Liu, CNN Money, 24 July 2026
Definition of require
Noun
  • Two weeks earlier, Anthropic had to disable access to its Fable 5 and Mythos 5 models to comply with an export control directive that was issued by the Commerce Department.
    — Ashley Capoot, CNBC, 20 July 2026
  • Sachin Sharma, a deputy commissioner of police, said Wangchuk’s hospitalization was carried out following medical advice and a court directive.
    — Aijaz Hussain, Los Angeles Times, 19 July 2026
Definition of directive

Browse Nearby Words

dicta
dictate
dictated
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Dictate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dictate. Accessed 26 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on dictate

Nglish: Translation of dictate for Spanish Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of aerie

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Do you 'say your piece' or 'say your peace'?

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

The Words of the Week - Jul 24

Why do we say 'fly off the handle'?
See More

Popular

See More

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
chain-question-mark
Missing Link Quiz July 2026 Five seconds to figure out the word that fits bot...
See All