Fact · Dictation
The Cambridge English Dictionary gives a second verb sense of dictate: to give orders, or to tell someone exactly what they must do, with total authority.
Checked against its source on October 17, 2026
In the source's own words
“to give orders ... tell someone exactly what they must do ... with total authority”
Dictate: meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge University Press, 2026, Entry for dictate, verb sense 'give orders'.
Open the original- What it measures
- This is the sense in the phrase dictate terms, and it has no connection to recording. Cambridge also lists a sense of dictate meaning to make something necessary, as in the characteristics of the land dictate what can be built.
- What it does not show
- Dictionary senses are labels for usage. The two verb senses share a Latin root, but the entry does not explain the history.