Word of the Day

: November 9, 2006

colligate

verb KAH-luh-gayt

What It Means

1 : transitive to bind, unite, or group together

2 a : transitive to subsume (isolated facts) under a general concept

b : intransitive to be or become a member of a group or unit

colligate in Context

All of the files have been colligated as one large searchable database.

Did You Know?

"Colligate" descends from Latin "colligare," itself from "com-" ("with") plus "ligare" ("to tie"). Which of the following words is NOT tied to "ligare"? "Ligature," "ligament," "lien," "rely," "ally," "oblige," "furl," and "league" (in the sense of "an association of persons, groups, or teams") can all be traced back along varying paths to "ligare." That leaves only "collocate," which means "to set side by side" and comes from "com-" plus "locare," meaning "to place."

*Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.