dictate
/ˈdɪkˌteɪt/noun, verb
dictate is spelled D-I-C-T-A-T-E: 7 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 3.8 times per million words in written English, the 13,321st most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, dictate means “An order or command” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of dictate is dictates.
How many letters and syllables are in dictate?
| Letters | 7: D-I-C-T-A-T-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 3.8 times per million words; the 13,321st most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is dictate?
Dictate appears 3.8 times per million words in written English, the 13,321st most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce dictate?
- /ˈdɪkˌteɪt/
As a verb (“To order, command, control”): /(ˌ)dɪkˈteɪt/, /ˈdɪkˌteɪt/.
Dictate has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-dictate2.wav, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-dictate.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of dictate
- dictates plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- dictating participle, present
- dictated participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does dictate mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
An order or command.
I must obey the dictates of my conscience.
verb
- 1
To order, command, control.
Etiquette dictates that wedding invitations should be acknowledged in writing.
- 2
To speak in order for someone to write down the words.
She is dictating a letter to a stenographer.
- 3
To determine or decisively affect.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Dictate in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| German | Diktat, Gebot , diktieren, bestimmen, vorschreiben |
| Portuguese | ordem, comando , ordenar, comandar, controlar , ditar |
| Spanish | dictado , dictar |
| French | dicter |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does dictate come from?
First attested in 1581; borrowed from Latin dictātum (“a thing said, something dictated”), substantivized from the nominative neuter singular of dictātus, the perfect passive participle of dictō (“pronounce or declare repeatedly; dictate”), frequentative of dīcō (“say, speak”). Doublet of diktat.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).